
Class _ 

Book - ! " 3 *$ _ 

Copyright N° 



COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 



THE RURAL HIGH SCHOOL 



JOINT COMMITTEE ON RURAL 
SCHOOLS 

Stale Grange 

G.W.DUNN MRS. F.GATES 

G. C. McNINCH 



Department of Education 

F. B. GILBERT R. P. SNYDER 

G. M. WILEY 



Dairymen's League 

E. R. EASTMAN. Secretary ALBERT MANNING 

N. F. WEBK 

Farm Bureau Federation 

ii. c. Mckenzie, vice-chairman \v. g. Mcintosh 
c. s. post h. g. reed 

State College of Agriculture 

J. E. BUTTERWORTH P. J. KRUSE 

G. A. WORKS, Chairman 

Home Bureau Federation 

MRS. M. E. ARMSTRONG MRS. A. E. BRIGDEN 

MRS. EDWARD YOUNG 

State Teachers' Association 

J. D. JONES MYRTl E K. MacDONAI 1) 

W E. PIERCE 



Committee on Direction 

G. A. WORKS, Director 

MRS. A. E. BRIGDEN, Assistant Director 

G. M. WILEY, Assistant Director 



RURAL SCHOOL SURVEY 
of NEW YORK STATE 

THE RURAL HIGH SCHOOL 



By 
EMERY N. FERRISS 

PROFESSOR OF RURAL EDUCATION 
CORNELL UNIVERSITY 



Ithaca, New York 
1922 






. 






Copyright, 1922, by 
Emery N. Ferriss 



WMF. FELL CO. PRINTERS 
PHILADELPHIA 

DC! 2b 

5C1A689006 



ly\£*\ 



FOREWORD 

BULLETIN No. 19 for 1920, of the U. S. Bureau of Education, 
indicates that there were 13,951 public high schools in the 
United States in the academic year 1917-18. Slightly more 
than half of these schools had each an enrolment of fifty pupils or 
less and seventy-five percent enrolled each one hundred pupils or 
less. These figures serve as an index of the importance of the small 
high school in the program of secondary education in this country. 
These small schools are in the main located in small villages or in 
the open country, and this study of the rural high schools of New 
York State should reveal problems that are of general interest be- 
cause of the frequency with which they are likely to be met. Dr. 
Ferriss' consideration of these questions should prove helpful to 
those who are concerned with the administrative and the instruc- 
tional work of small high schools throughout the country. 

In the organization of the survey the administrative phases of 
this study were placed under the general direction of Dr. C. H. Judd, 
while Dr. W. C. Bagley had a similar relation to the problems of 
instruction and teacher preparation. 

This study was made and the results published with money fur- 
nished by the Commonwealth Fund. 

Geo. A. Works, 

Director. 



TABLE OF CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Foreword 5 

List of Diagrams 9 

List of Tables 10 

PART L— ORGANIZATION, ADMINISTRATION, AND 
SUPERVISION 

CHAP. 

I. The Distribution of Rural High Schools and Their Pupil 

Population 13 

The Sources of Data 13 

Types and Distribution of Rural High Schools L3 

Percentage of Rural High School Pupils Coming from One- and 

Two-teacher Elementary Schools 16 

Distribution of Pupils by School Year and Age 17 

Ratio of Boys to Girls in Each High School Year 24 

II. The Organization of the Rural High School 25 

Number and Sex of Teaching Staff 25 

The Organization of the School Day 26 

The Work of the Principal: Teaching Load, Supervision, Office 
Work, Clerical Assistance, Direction of Pupil Activities, Time 

Given to Non-pupil Outside Activities 28-39 

The Teaching Load of Teachers 39 

Size of Classes in the Schools of Different Types 43 

Types of Reorganization in the Seventh and Eighth Grades to Link 

Them up with the High School 46 

The Junior High School Organization 48 

III. The Administration and Supervision of the Rural High School . 52 

The Principal as Director and Supervisor of Instruction 52 

The Principal and the Selection of Teachers, and the Assignment of 

Their Work 55 

State Inspection of the Rural High School 57 

School Records on File in the Local School 61 

Pupil Guidance 61 

Supervised Study 63 

Kxtra-Class-Room Activities 65 

High School Assemblies 65 

Community Organizations Cooperating With the School 69 

Appeals Made by Principals to Interest Pupils of Rural Schools in 

High School Education 71 

The Regents Examination System and the Administration of the 

Rural High School 72 

Buildings and Equipment 76 

7 



CHAP. FAGE 

IV. Recommendations and Suggestions for the Improvement of the 
Organization, Administration, and Supervision of the 

Rural High School 79 

( lencral Recommendations 79 

The High School Principal 80 

The High School Teacher 81 

Flexibility in the Administration of High School Curricula and 

Courses of Study 81 

Junior High Schools 82 

inspections 83 

Supervision 83 

Buildings and Fquipment 84 

Extra-Class-Room Activities 85 

Pupil Guidance and Supervised Study 86 

Financing the Rural High Schools 86 

The Standardization of the Rural High School 87 

PART II.— THE TEACHING STAFF; CLASS ROOM INSTRUC- 
TION; AND THE CURRICULUM 

V. Tin: Teaching Staff 89 

The Basis of the Study 89 

Age of Teachers 90 

Sex 92 

Married or Single 92 

Early Environment 92 

Place of Birth 94 

Nationality 96 

Occupational Croups Furnishing the Rural High School Teachers. 96 

Parental Income 97 

Size of Family . 100 

Academic' and Professional Training 100 

Type of Certificate Held 102 

^ge at Which Instructors Begin Teaching 103 

Number of Years' Teaching Experience 104 

Number of Years in Present Position 105 

Number of Months Employed . 106 

Salary 108 

Economic Status, Income from Sources Other than Teaching, 

Annual Saving, Amount Paid for Life Insurance 109-112 

Persons Entirely or Partially Dependent Upon Teacher for Support 112 

Money Laming Work Done Other Than Teaching 114 

Professional Growth 115 

Summary of Salient Points 11Q 

Recommendations 123 

VI. The Observation of Class-room Instruction 127 

Method Used 127 

Number of Schools in Which Class room Work was Observed, num- 
ber of Recitations 130 

Statistical Resume of Results 131 

General Summary of Characteristics of Class-room Teaching 140 

VII. The Curricullm 147 

Section 1. — The Fxisting Curricula 147 

Sources of Data 147 

S 



PAGE 

Subjects Offered in the Rural High School 147 

Subjects Required in 385 Rural High Schools 150 

Subjects Offered as Electives in 385 Rural High Schools 151 

Percent of Pupil's Time Devoted to the Various Subjects 153 

Activities Engaged in by Graduates of Rural High Schools 154 

The Adaptation of Curriculum Elements to the Pupil as Indicated 

by Percentage of Failures 156 

The State Syllabi for Secondary Schools and Their Adaptation to 

the Rural High School 159 

Size of Classes in Different Subjects and Estimated Cost of 

Instruction Per Pupil Hour 165 

Contemporary Magazines as a Source of Supplementary Subject 

Matter 168 

Section 2. — Some Principles Underlying the Building of a Rural 

High School Curriculum 170 

Section 3. — General Summary, with Suggestions for the Improve- 
ment of the Curriculum of the Rural High School 180 

Recommendations 181 



LIST OF DIAGRAMS 

DIAGRAM PAGE 

1. A comparison of ages of ninth grade pupils in New York rural high 

schools and all Connecticut high schools 19 

2. Number of pupils in the different years of high school in proportion to 

each 100 in the first year, for New York four-year rural high schools 
and Massachusetts high schools with an enrolment under 200 21 

3. Percent of boys and girls in different years of the rural high schools. . 24 

4. Proportion of men and women teachers in New York rural high schools 

compared with 25 city high schools of New York state and with high 

schools of the United States 26 

5. Distribution of the principal's time during the school day 39 

6. The rural high school teacher's daily teaching load 42 

7. The size of classes in the different types of rural high schools 45 

8. Percent of New York rural high schools of different types having pupil 

guidance 63 

9. Percent of New York rural high schools of different types having the 

active cooperation of community organizations 70 

10. Age of rural high school teaching staff 91 

1 1 . Place of birth of principals and teachers 94 

12. Occupations of fathers of principals and teachers 97 

13. Teaching experience and number of years in present position of rural 

high school teachers 107 

14. Time given to the making of the assignment of lessons. Percent of the 

179 recitations studied 141 

15. Percent of pupil's time given to various subjects throughout the high 

school course 154 

9 



LIST OF TABLES 

TABLE PAGE 

1. Distribution of rural high schools on the basis of size of center in which 

located and rank of school 15 

2. Distribution of rural high schools with respect to counties and super- 

visory districts 16 

3. The percentage that pupils coming from one- and two-teacher elemen- 

tary schools are of the total high school enrolment in the high schools 
classified according to size of pupil enrolment 17 

4. (a) High school age-grade table of 609 rural high schools based on age 

at the beginning of school year 1919-20; (b) Percentage in each 
year of each age, boys and girls combined; (c) Connecticut 
(1918, Nov.-Dec.) — percentage of each age, boys and girls com- 
bined. All high schools 18 

5. Enrolment by years in 403 rural high schools of New York: (a) showing 

the number, boys and girls separately, enrolled in each year; (b) the 
comparative percentages for each year, using the first year as the 100 
percent basis; (c) the distribution in each year on the basis of 100 
pupils enrolled in the high school 20 

6. The enrolment by years of the pupils in the rural high school as com- 

pared with the pupil enrolment in certain Eastern states and with the 
United States as a whole 21 

7. The number of graduates for each 100 pupils entering high school. ... 22 

8. The relative percentage of boys and girls in the different years of the 

rural high school 24 

9. The teaching staff as to number per school and sex 25 

10. The organization of 402 rural high schools from the standpoint of num- 

ber of recitation periods per day and the length of the recitation 
period 27 

11. The teaching load of the principal 30 

12. The total amount of time per day devoted by the high school principal 

to supervision of instruction 31 

13. Total amount of time per day devoted by the high school principal to 

supervision of high school instruction 32 

14. Total amount of time per day devoted by the high school principal to 

supervision of instruction in the elementary grades 33 

15. Total amount of time per day devoted by the high school principal to 

office work 34 

16. The clerical assistance given the principal 35 

17. Total amount of time per day devoted by the high school principal to 

pupil activities 36 

io 



TABLE PAGE 

18. Total amount of time per day devoted by the high school principal to 

non-pupil outside activities 37 

19. Total distribution of the principal's time during the school day 38 

20. The high school teacher's daily teaching load, expressed in terms of: 

(a) Number of different subjects taught; (b) number of periods of 
class-room teaching; (c) number of periods on duty, teaching plus 
study-room supervision 41 

21. The size of classes in New York rural high schools grouped according to 

number of pupils enrolled 44 

22. Reorganization in the seventh and eighth grades either in the modifica- 

tion of course of study or of organization to link them up with the 

high school 47 

23. Number of high school teachers' meetings held by principal each month 52 

24. Number of individual conferences with teachers concerning their work 

by principal each month 53 

25. The extent to which the principal has a voice in the selection of teachers 55 

26. The principal's responsibility in the assignment of teacher's work ... 56 

27. Nature of assistance given high school: (a) by district superintendent; 

(b) by State Department 60 

28. Types of school records kept on file in local high school office 61 

29. Ways and means of pupil guidance in New York rural high schools ... 62 

30. Schools having supervised study and the plan used 64 

31. Number and kinds of extra-class-room activities 66 

32. Extra-class-room activities: Time of meeting, methods of control, 

nature of teachers' responsibility 67 

33. High school assemblies: frequency, length in minutes, method of con- 

ducting, nature of exercises, nature and amount of pupil participation 68 

34. Community organizations actively cooperating with the school 70 

35. Appeals made by principal of high school to interest pupils from rural 

schools in high school education 71 

36. Age of teaching staff at nearest birthday 91 

37. Sex of teaching staff 92 

38. Number and percent of teaching staff married and single 92 

39. Early environment of teaching staff 93 

40. Place of birth of rural high school instructors 94 

41 . Nationality of parents 95 

42. Occupation of the father 96 

43. Annual parental income 97 

44. Type of family, on basis of size, furnishing the teacher of the rural high 

school 98 

45. Academic and professional training 101 

45A. Academic training of 2,387 rural high school principals and teachers 

of the state (1919-20) 102 

46. Type of certificate held 102 

47. Age at which rural high school instructors begin teaching 103 

48. Number of years' teaching experience 104 

ii 



TABLE PAGE 

49. Number of years in present position 106 

50. Number of months employed 106 

51. Salaries of 416 rural high school principals and teachers in 1920-21 . . . 108 

52. Salaries of 2,387 rural high school principals and teachers in 1919-20. . 109 

53. The amount of money derived from other sources during the year (inter- 

est received, income from other investments, etc.) 110 

54. Approximate amount of money earned outside regular teaching salary 

during the year 110 

55. Amount saved during the year in addition to life insurance and pension 1 1 1 

56. Amount paid for life insurance exclusive of pension 112 

57. Persons dependent upon principals and teachers for support 113 

58. Money earning work engaged in other than teaching 115 

59. Manner of spending the summer vacation 116 

60. Membership in teachers' organizations 117 

61 . Teachers' reading circles as reported by 348 rural high school principals . 1 18 

62. Subjects offered by 609 rural high schools in 1919-20 148 

63. Subjects required of all pupils as reported by the principals of 385 rural 

high schools 150 

64. Subjects offered as elcctives as reported by the principals of 385 rural 

high schools 152 

65. Activities engaged in in 1921 by 2,683 rural high school graduates. . . . 155 

66. Percent of pupils failed by teachers and regents of all those taking the 

examination 1907-1918: (a) in eight subjects commonly taught in 
the rural high school; (b) average percent failed in all subjects. . . . 157 

67. Subject failures in 30 Connecticut high schools 157 

68. Percent of pupils failing in 15 subjects in 75 Wisconsin high schools. . . 158 

69. The distribution of rural high school pupils in eight academic subjects 

on the basis of grades received in the Regents examinations in June, 
1920. (Based on the grades of approximately 1,000 pupils in each 
subject.) 159 

70. The percentage of classes of different sizes in nineteen subjects com- 

monly taught in rural high schools 166 

71. The median class in sixteen academic subjects in the different types of 

rural high schools classified on the basis of number of pupils enrolled, 
the variation from the median for all classes, and the estimated cost of 
instruction per pupil hour 167 

72. Magazines in rural high school libraries 169 



THE RURAL HIGH SCHOOL 

PARTI 

ORGANIZATION, ADMINISTRATION, AND 
SUPERVISION 

CHAPTER I 

THE DISTRIBUTION OF RURAL HIGH SCHOOLS 
AND THEIR PUPIL POPULATION 

THE data used as the basis of the study of the organization, 
administration, and supervision of the rural high schools were 
derived mainly from three sources: (1) statistics and reports 
of the State Department of Education; (2) the replies of 405 prin- 
cipals to a questionnaire sent to all rural high school principals of 
the State; and (3) visitation of over 75 rural high schools in all sec- 
tions of the State. In the use of data on any item gained through 
the replies of principals only those schools were included for which 
there was a definite report on that particular item. The 405 princi- 
pals reporting represented approximately 66 per cent of each type 
of rural high school in the State, classification being made on the 
basis of number of pupils enrolled in high school work. 

Types and Distribution 

According to Handbook 24 of the University of the State of New 
York for October, 1920, there were at that time 765 public high 

13 



schools 1 in the State. Of the 765 public high schools, 609 were 
rural high schools located in centers of 4500 population or less and 
doing from one to four years of accredited high school work. Of 
these rural high schools, 413 were fully accredited four year high 
schools; 110 were ranked as senior schools doing three years of 
accredited work, though a large percentage of these schools offered 
the fourth year; 34 were ranked as middle schools doing two years 
of accredited work; and 52 ranked as junior schools doing one year 
of accredited work. During the year two junior schools, Benson 
Mines and Sloan, and one middle school, Hyde Park, discontinued 
high school work. During the year, also, undoubtedly several 
schools were added to the accredited list for one or more years of 
high school work and some were advanced in rank. However, 
this number is not great enough to change materially the relative 
number and proportion of rural high schools. 

In 1918, according to statistics of the Federal Bureau of Educa- 
tion, New York stood 27th among the states in the number of 
high school pupils enrolled for each 1000 of population, with 15.3 or 
0.3 less than the average of 15.6 for the United States as a whole. 
With regard to the percentage of population (18 years old) graduat- 
ing from four year high schools, New York stood 30th with 8.05, 
or 2.27 less than the average of 10.32 for the United States as a 
whole. 

In this study the rural high schools are distributed in the follow- 
ing manner: first, as to the size of the center of population in which 
they are located; second, as to distribution by counties; third, as 
to distribution by district superintendents' districts; and fourth, 
as to number of high school pupils enrolled. Two hundred and 
forty-seven schools, according to the U. S. Census for 1920, are in 
rural communities or in unincorporated centers; 75 are in villages 
with a population of 500 or less; 107 are in villages with a popu- 
lation between 500 and 1000, making a total of 429 high schools, 
or over 70 per cent, in centers of 1000 or less. As to rank, these 
429 schools stand as follows: 49 junior schools, 33 middle schools, 
106 senior schools, and 241 four year high schools. (See Table 1.) 

1 The terra "high school" is used throughout this report as applying to any 
school offering one or more years of secondary school work. 

14 



Table 1.- 



-dlstribution of rural hlgh schools on the basis of slze of 
Center in which Located and Rank of School 



Size of center 


Junior 
schools 


Middle 
schools 


Senior 
schools 


High 
schools 


Total 


Rural or unincorporated 












hamlets 


40 


24 


82 


101 


247 


Villages of 250 or under 




1 


4 


3 


8 


250- 500 


4 


7 


14 


42 


67 


500- 750 


5 


1 


4 


53 


63 


750-1,000 






2 


42 


44 


1,000-1,250 






1 


35 


36 


1,250-1,500 








24 


24 


1,500-1,750 


2 






24 


26 


1,750-2,000 








13 


13 


2,000-2,250 


1 


1 




11 


13 


2,250-2,500 








11 


11 


2,500-2,750 






1 


16 


17 


2,750-3,000 








6 


6 


3,000-3,250 






"l 


7 


9 


3,250-3,500 








6 


6 


3,500-3,750 








4 


4 


3,750-4,000 








6 


6 


4,000-4,250 








5 


5 


4,250-4,500 








2 


2 


Above 4,500, 1920 












U. S. Census 








2 


2 


Total 


52 


34 


110 


413 


609 







In the distribution by counties the rural high schools number per 
county from three in Fulton county to 27 each for St. Lawrence and 
Suffolk counties. By supervisory districts the distribution runs 
from none in seven supervisory districts to 13 high schools in the first 
supervisory district of Suffolk county. There is a discrepancy of 
1 1 high schools between the report by counties and supervisory 
districts (this report giving 620 schools doing high school work) 
and the number given in the October, 1920, Directory of the Univer- 
sity of the State of New York. This discrepancy is probably due 
to the fact that the district superintendents have reported some 
schools not recognized by the State Department as giving accred- 
ited high school work. For the detailed distribution by counties 
and supervisory districts see Table 2. 

15 



Table 2. — Distribution of Rural High Schools With Respect to Coun- 
ties and Supervisory Districts (District Superintendents' Report, 
1920) 

A. Distribution of Rural High Schools by Counties 



Albany 4 

Allegany 16 

Broome 5 

Cattaraugus 19 

Cayuga 13 

Chautauqua 21 

Chemung 6 

Chenango 13 

Clinton 12 

Columbia 6 

Cortland 6 

Delaware 13 

Dutchess 12 

Erie 19 

Essex 14 

Franklin 9 

Fulton 3 

Genesee 8 

Greene 7 



Hamilton 3 

Herkimer 7 

Jefferson 23 

Lewis 8 

Livingston 12 

Madison 18 

Monroe 13 

Montgomery 6 

Nassau 13 

Niagara 6 

Oneida 23 

Onondaga 21 

Ontario 9 

Orange 15 

Orleans 5 

Oswego 12 

Otsego 20 

Putnam 5 

Rensselaer 5 



Rockland 7 

St. Lawrence 27 

Saratoga 8 

Schenectady 3 

Schoharie 6 

Schuyler 4 

Seneca 4 

Steuben 18 

Suffolk 27 

Sullivan 11 

Tioga 6 

Tompkins 7 

Ulster 5 

Warren 6 

Washington 10 

Wayne 13 

Westchester 9 

Wyoming 9 

Yates 3 



B. Distribution of Rural High Schools in the 208 Supervisory Districts 

Number of schools per district 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 

Number of districts having each 
number of schools .. 7 31 44 61 35 18 7 1 1 2 1 

The rural high schools are distributed as follows according to the 
number of high school pupils enrolled: 332 schools, or 54.5 per cent 
of all the rural high schools of the State, have an enrolment of less 
than 50; 180 schools or 29.5 per cent have an enrolment of 50-99; 
65 schools or 10.7 percent have an enrolment of 100-149; and 32 
schools or 5.2 per cent have an enrolment of 150 or over. 

Percentage of Pupils Coming From One and Two Teacher 

Schools 

A study of the percentage of the high school pupils coming from 
one and two teacher elementary schools shows that the schools with 
enrolments of 1 to 49 (not including the schools of 1-49 pupils 
offering less than 4 years ' high school work) and 50 to 99 are most 
typically rural from the standpoint of ratio of rural pupils enrolled 
to village pupils enrolled. These schools should be also most rural 
or sympathetic with rural conditions in regard to their village en- 
rolment because of the rural interests of the small village. The 
four year high schools with a pupil enrolment under 50 also have 

16 



the largest percentage of pupils from other villages with no or less 
than four year high schools. In the schools of these two classes, on 
the basis of enrolment, one-third of the pupils are from rural com- 
munities. The schools with an enrolment above 100 have a 
smaller percentage of rural pupils, although in actual numbers the 
enrolment of rural pupils per school is at least equal to that of the 
smaller schools. The main problem of high school opportunities 
for the rural child of New York seems to be largely the prob- 
lem of the high school with a pupil enrolment of 1 to 100, both be- 
cause these schools are 84 per cent of all the rural high schools and 
because of the relative number of pupils attending from one and 
two teacher schools. 

Table 3. — The Percentage that Pupils Coming from One- and Two- 
Teacher Elementary Schools are of the Total High School Enrol- 
ment in the High Schools Classified According to Size of Pupil Enrol- 
ment. (403 High Schools) 



Types of schools on 

basis of size of 

enrolment 


Percentage that pupils 

from one- and two-teacher 

schools are of the total 

high school enrolment 


Percentage that pupils 
from other villages are of 
N total high school enrol- 
ment 




Boys 


Girls 


Boys 


Girls 


1-49 (less than 4 

years) 

1-49 


21.0 
33.5 
33.1 
25.8 
24.1 
29.2 


22.3 
32.3 
31.9 
29.5 
24.6 
29.6 


1.1 
6.4 
1.0 

0.7 
0.8 
0.8 


1.1 
6.3 


50-99 

100-149 

150 


0.9 
0.8 
06 


All rural high schools . 


0.8 



Distribution of Pupils by School Year and Age 
The distribution of the pupils in the 609 rural high schools with 
reference to age and year of high school work shows that the range 
in ages for any year of the course is wide. The relatively large per- 
centage of pupils at or above the age of sixteen in the first two 
years is very noticeable. In comparison with all the high schools 
of Connecticut the percentage of pupils in the high school year to 
which they would normally belong is low. (Table 4.) 

2 17 



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Diagram 1. — Comparison of ages of 9th grade pupils in New York rural high 
schools and all Connecticut high schools 

A comparison of New York rural high schools with the rural 
high schools of the United States as a whole and with the high 
schools of certain other states for which data are available shows 
that the percentage of pupils reaching the third and fourth years is 
comparatively low. It is considerably lower than for all the rural 
high schools of the United States. According to the report of the 
Federal Bureau of Education, for 1917-18 New York stood 27th 
on the basis of number of high school pupils enrolled per 1000 popu- 
lation, but dropped to 30th place on the basis of the number of grad- 
uates per 1000 (18 years old). In the New York rural high schools 
the percentage of pupils in the third and fourth years is very similar 
to the percentage in the last two years for all the schools of New 
Jersey and is materially less than that of New Hampshire. Com- 
pared with the schools of Connecticut with a pupil enrolment 
under 100, or with the schools of Massachusetts with a pupil en- 
rolment under 200, the New York rural high schools show in both 
instances a smaller percentage of pupils retained to the third and 
fourth years. A comparison with all New York high schools indi- 
cates a greater holding power of the rural high school over the city 
high schools of the State. (Tables 5 and 6.) 



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Table 6. — A Study of Enrolment by Years of the Pupils in the Rural 
High Schools as Compared with the Pupil Enrolment in Certain 
Eastern States and with the United States as a Whole. The Distribu- 
tion in Each Year is Shown on the Basis of a Total High School Enrol- 
ment of 100 Pupils 



Type of school 



1st 


2d 


3d 


4th 


year 


year 


year 


year 


41.51 


26.85 


17.69 


12.81 


41.8 


26.1 


17.8 


13.3 


43.8 


26.6 


17.2 


11.3 


40.25 


27.75 


18.41 


13.59 


40.2 


26.4 


17.4 


15.5 


36.5 


26.8 


20.8 


15.9 


42.6 


26.4 


17.3 


13.5 


40.0 


24.8 


19.1 


16.0 


38.9 


27.1 


19.6 


14.4 



5th 
year 



609 rural high schools, New York 
(1919-20) 

345 (four-year) rural high schools. 
New York (1920-21) 

All New York high schools (1916-17) 

54 rural high schools offering voca- 
tional courses (1919-20) 

Connecticut high schools with enrol- 
ment under 100 pupils (1920-21). . 

Massachusetts high schools with en- 
rolment under 200 pupils (1916-17) 

New Jersey high schools (1917-18) . . 

New Hampshire high schools (1915- 
16) 

Rural high schools of United States 
(1917-18) 

100 iOO 



1.12 

00 

10 



51) 



New York 
Massachusetts 



57 



4* 



1st year 2nd year 3rd year 4th year 

Diagram 2. — Number of pupils in the different years of high school in pro- 
portion to each 100 in the first year, for New York four-year rural high schools 
and Massachusetts high schools with an enrolment under 200 



The number of pupils graduating for each 100 entering high 
school is considerably higher in the rural high school than in the 
city high schools of the State and slightly lower than in the case of 
high schools situated in villages having superintendents. 



Table 7. — The Number of Graduates for Each 100 Pupils Entering 

High School 1 



Type of school 


First year 
pupils, 1916 


Graduates, 
1920 


Continuing 

education, 
1920 


Cities and villages having superin- 
tendent 

Rural high schools 

Rural high and senior schools 

Villages having superintendents. . . . 


100 

100 
100 
100 


25.82 
31.94 
30.99 

32.30 


14.27 
18.89 

18.25 
14.42 



The percentage of pupils over 18 years of age in each year of high 
school work is high. The New York distribution of pupils for rural 
high schools shows a pulling both toward underage and toward 
overage, particularly the latter. A large factor operating to pro- 
duce both of these characteristics is probably the final examination 
as the sole basis of promotion, and the rigid, inflexible type of cur- 
riculum in the small high schools. 

The study of 225,865 employed boys of the ages 16, 17, and 18 
years made by the New York State Military Training Commission 
bears out the facts given above. It shows that while the employed 
boys of the ages given, from places under 5000 population and from 
rural districts, tended in greater percentages than employed boys 
from larger centers to remain in school one year beyond the legal 
age, and in equal percentages for two and three years, the grade 
attained in school, particularly in the case of farm boys, was ma- 
terially less than for the boys in the larger centers. The following 
statistics, taken from the study 2 by Howard G. Burdge, the Director 
of the work of the Commission, give the facts in detail: 

1 Statistics from Assistant Commissioner for Secondary Education. 

2 Burdge, Howard G.: Our Boys, pp. 64, 88, 102. 



1. Persistence in School (from Burdge) 



Groups 


Left 

illegally 


Left on 
reaching 
legal age 


Remained beyond legal age 


One 

year 


Two 

years 


Three 

years 


Greater New York 

Cities over 25,000 

Cities under 25,000 
Villages over 5,000 
Places under 5,000 
Employed farm boys. . . . 


7.0 
4.8 
8.7 
5.0 
4.3 
3.4 


28.6 
28.9 
23.5 
23.6 
23.8 
26.4 


39.9 
37.1 
36.0 
36.8 
38.0 
40.0 


20.5 
22.5 
24.0 
26.9 
26.0 
25.1 


4.0 
6.7 

7.8 
7.7 
7.9 
5.1 



2. Last Grade Completed, Percentage Completing Each Grade 
(from Burdge) 





4th 










High school 






grade 
or 


5th 


6th 


7th 


8th 


















grade 


grade 


grade 


grade 


T 


TT 


TTT 


TV 




under 


















Greater New York .... 


100 


94.3 


91.8 


84.4 


61.5 


18.0 


9.2 


3.3 


1.0 


Cities over 25,000 


100 


96.6 


92.6 


77.4 


55.6 


24.2 


11.2 


4.0 


1.3 


Cities under 25,000. . . 


100 


95.1 


89.2 


71.7 


49.8 


23.7 


10.3 


3.4 


1.2 


Villages over 5, 000... . 


100 


94.8 


88.6 


71.9 


49.7 


22.2 


10.0 


3.6 


1.2 


Places under 5,000. .. . 


100 


95.8 


89.4 


71.8 


47.9 


21.0 


10.1 


3.9 


2.0 


Employed farm boys. . 


100 


96.8 


89.3 


71.0 


41.5 


12.4 


5.6 


1.9 


0.7 



The same study also shows that the rate of progress in school in 
the case of employed boys from places under 5000 and from rural 
communities was less than for the larger centers. In conclusion 
the study of employed boys of the State supports the facts shown 
by the age-distribution of pupils in the rural high schools as to the 
comparatively high percentage of retardation and elimination. 
The following table gives the percentage of a grade made each year 
while in school : 

3. Average Rate of Progress per Grade per Year (from Burdge) 

Greater New York 92.2 percent 

Cities over 25,000 90.1 

Cities under 25,000 86.9 

Villages over 5,000 85.1 

Places under 5, 000 84.9 

Employed farm boys 82.8 " 

23 



Ratio of Boys to Girls in each School Year 
In the matter of the ratio of boys to girls in each year of the 
high school, New York rural high schools follow closely the aver- 
age for rural and village high schools for the whole United States, 
as shown by the comparison with statistics compiled from the Re- 
port of the Bureau of Education on High Schools for 1917-18. 
If, however, the ratio is studied comparatively with respect to the 
New York rural high schools of the different classes, classification 
being made on the basis of number of pupils enrolled, the condi- 
tion shown is not so good. The ratio of boys to girls is very much 
lower in the smaller schools, indicating that the holding power 
with respect to boys is less in the smaller schools. It gradually im- 
proves as the schools increase in size, but is best in the case of 54 rural 
high schools offering vocational courses. The study of 403 rural 
high schools shown in Table 8 clearly indicates this condition. 



Table 8. — A Study of the Relative Percentage of Boys and Girls in the 
Different Years of the Rural High School (403 Schools) 



Type of school 



1-49 pupils, less than 4 year 
schools 

1-49 pupils 

50-99 pupils 

100-149 pupils 

150 pupils and over 

For all the 403 high schools 

54 New York rural high schools 
offering vocational courses . . 

Village and rural high schools 
of U.S. (1917-18) 



First 


year 


Second year 


Third 


year 


Fourtl 


Boys 


Girls 


Boys 


Girls 


Boys 


Girls 


Boys 


43.2 


56.8 


36.6 


63.4 


32.9 


67.1 


27.3 


44.9 


55.1 


39.7 


60.3 


37.2 


62.8 


34.8 


45.2 


54.8 


42.0 


58.0 


38.0 


62.0 


36.9 


44.4 


55.6 


42.6 


57.3 


41.9 


58.1 


38.5 


45.0 


55.0 


41.1 


58.9 


41.8 


58.2 


36.3 


44.8 


55.2 


41.2 


58.8 


39.4 


60.6 


36.7 


47.0 


53.0 


42.0 


58.0 


42.6 


57.4 


37.8 


43.8 


56.2 


41.3 


58.7 


39.4 


60.6 


36.8 



72.7 
65.2 
63.1 
ol. 5 
63.7 
63.3 

62.2 

63.2 



Per cent 




Girls 



55 



59 



61 



63 



4th year 



Diagram 3. — Percent of boys and girls in different years of the rural high schools 

24 



CHAPTER II 
THE ORGANIZATION OF THE RURAL HIGH SCHOOL 

The Teaching Staff 

THE data with regard to the organization of the teaching staff 
of the New York rural high school as to number of teachers 
and percentage of men and women indicate that over one- 
half of the schools have a teaching staff of three instructors or less. 
In all New York rural high schools the relative percentage of men 
is exceptionally low as compared with the average either for village 
and rural high schools for the United States as a whole or for all 
high schools in the United States in 1918, or for 25 city high schools 
of New York in 1918 as they appeared in alphabetical order. 



Table 9. 



-The Teaching Staff as to Number per School and Sex 
(405 Schools) 



Types of schools 


Average 
number of 

teachers 
per school 


Percentage 

that men are 

of the total 

number of 

teachers 


Percentage 

that women 

are of the 

total 

number of 

teachers 


Total 

number of 

schools 

reporting 


1-49, less than 4 years .... 

1^9 

50-99 

100-149 

150 


2.2 
3.0 
4.9 
6.8 
10.2 
4.3 


24.15 
31.57 
22.62 
24.06 
21.33 
26.71 

33.9 

33.66 

34.55 


75.85 
68.43 
77.38 
75.94 
78.67 
73.29 

66.1 

66.34 
65.45 


60 
162 
112 

49 

22 


Average for the 405 schools 
25 city high schools in 

New York State 

Village and rural high 

schools for U. S., 1917- 

18 

All high schools, U. S., 

1917-18 


405 



25 



I Men teachers c 
Per cent 



I Women teachers 



73.3 




New York 
rural 



U.S. all 



Diagram 4. — Proportion of men and women teachers in New York rural 
high schools compared with 25 city high schools of New York State and with 
high schools of the United States 



The Organization of the School Day 
With regard to the organization of the New York rural high 
school, a detailed study of over 400 schools shows a wide diversity. 
There are, however, rather definite modes around which the schools 
group themselves in respect to the various phases of school organ- 
ization. The most common plan as to the daily program of classes 
is that of the eight-period day. In the larger schools, the seven- 
period day is most frequently found, with a large number following 
the eight-period organization. The schools with a high school en- 
rolment under 100, or 84 percent of all the rural high schools of 
the State, are prevailingly organized on the basis of eight periods a 

26 



day, but with a strong leaning toward nine or more periods. Five 
of the smaller schools reported a ten-period day and one school re- 
ported 12 periods in the daily program. 

The most common recitation period is forty minutes in length, 
with 71 schools using the 45 minute period. Twenty-three of the 

Table 10. — A Study of the Organization of 402 Rural High Schools 
from the Standpoint of Number of Recitation Periods per Day and 
the Length of the Recitation Period 





Number of high schools 


grouped according 


to 








pupil enrolment 






Number of 














periods in 














school day 


1-49 


1-49 












less than 


full four 


50-99 


100-149 


150 and 


Total 




4 years 


years 






over 




5 


2 










2 


6 


2 




1 


1 


1 


5 


7 


17 


29 


42 


26 


13 


127 


8 


29 


123 


65 


20 


8 


245 


9 


6 


6 


5 






17 


10 


1 


4 








5 


11 














12 


1 










1 


Total 


58 


162 


113 


47 


22 


402 


Length of 

recitation 


1-49 
less than 


1-49 
full four 


50-99 


100-149 


150 and 


Total 


periods 


4 years 


years 






over 




30 


2 


2 








4 


35 


12 


7 


2 


1 




22 


40 


27 


111 


78 


24 


9 


249 


45 


9 


15 


22 


17 


8 


71 


30+40 




4 


1 






5 


30+45 








1 




1 


35+40 


1 


10 


2 


2 


1 


16 


35+45 


5 




2 


2 




9 


40+55 


2 


13 


6 




2 


23 


60 










2 


2 


Total 


58 


162 


113 


47 


22 


402 







27 



smaller schools reporting and three of the larger schools have 
periods of thirty-five minutes or less. A considerable number of 
schools have periods of differing lengths, as combinations of 35 and 
40 or of 35 and 45 minutes. Only two schools reported an organ- 
ization on the 60 minute period basis. (See Table 10.) 

All data on the daily program of the rural high school, both from 
reports from principals and from visitation of over 75 rural high 
schools in all sections of the State, point definitely to the conclusion 
that there is a strong tendency to divide the high school day into an 
excessively large number of periods. They also point to a fact 
related to the former, that many high schools have periods too 
short for efficient high school work. With the exception of an al- 
most negligible number of the larger schools, the length of the reci- 
tation periods is too short to permit of any class-room study under 
supervision or for the adequate development of a genuine lesson 
unit. The length of periods and the number in a day when com- 
bined with the facts as to teaching load of the principal (Table 11) 
and the teaching load of the high school teacher (Table 19) indi- 
cate clearly a need of reorganization in the daily program of the 
rural high school. It would seem that it might be highly advisable 
to decrease the number of recitation periods a week in some sub- 
jects if that were the only means of reducing the number of periods 
in a day and thus increasing the length of the recitation period. 
Further reductions might very well be made through alternation of 
subjects. (See p. 46.) 



The Work of the Principal 
The principal of the rural high school in New York is also the 
principal of the elementary grades of the school. He is nominally 
at least responsible for the organization, administration, and 
supervision of instruction of the elementary grades, as well as of the 
high school. In the smaller high schools of two or three teachers 
(one being the principal) in the secondary or academic grades, 
there are from three to five teachers in the elementary grades. 
This organization makes the high school principal 's work complex 
and difficult. In the smaller schools he has, in addition to his 

28 



principalship work, a large teaching load. In other words, the daily 
teaching load of the rural high school principal in New York is as 
heavy as that set up as a standard for high school instructors in 
the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools. 
When this condition is considered in the light of the fact that the 
principal of the rural high school has in his charge the organization 
and oversight of the instruction in the elementary grades, as well 
as in the high school proper, it becomes more serious. If the 
principal is to have time to perform the duties that should devolve 
upon him; if he is to function adequately as an administrative 
officer and as a supervisor, he must, it would seem, have relief 
from so much class-room teaching. Otherwise only the principal 
of exceptional ability and strength will develop into the counselor 
of his pupils, the leader of his teachers or of his board and com- 
munity in educational matters, that the rural high school principal 
must be if efficient high schools are to be found in rural com- 
munities. 

Table 11 gives in detail the facts as to the teaching load of the 
principal of the rural high school as reported by 385 New York 
rural high school principals. In the schools doing less than four 
years of high school work the median teaching load a day for prin- 
cipals is seven periods, while in 12 out of 54 schools of this class re- 
porting the principal was teaching nine or more periods a day dur- 
ing the school year of 1920-21. In the four year high schools with 
an enrolment under 50, the median principal taught six periods a 
day, the range for the middle 50 percent being between five and 
seven periods and with 63 principals teaching seven periods a day 
or more. The median for schools with a high school enrolment 
of 50 and above is 3.5 periods a day, while for all schools reporting 
the median is five periods a day. For 385 schools, 96 principals, 
or over 24 percent, were teaching seven periods a day or more. 
(See Table 11.) 

The median principal for all schools with a high school enrol- 
ment under 50 gave between 31 and 40 minutes a day to supervi- 
sion of instruction. Forty principals in these same schools gave 
no time to supervision. The median principal in schools with an 
enrolment in the high school of 50 and above gave 61-70 minutes 

29 





Table 11. — The Teaching Load of the Principal 




No. of 


Schools 
less 
than 

4 years 
1-49 
(1) 


Schools 
full 


Schools 


Schools 


Sch 


Total 
ools of 


Total 
of 


Grand 

total 

all 

schools 


minutes 


4 years 


50-99 


100-149 


15 


3- schools 


schools 


per day 


1-49 

(2) 


(3) 


(4) 





5) (1) and 

(2) 


(3), (4) 
and (5) 





1 


1 


3 


5 




4 2 


12 


14 


20 












1 


1 


1 


40 


1 




6 


ii 




4 1 


21 


22 


60 




1 


3 


2 




3 1 


8 


9 


80 


i 


1 


10 


4 




2 2 


16 


18 


100 




2 


3 


5 




2 2 


10 


12 


120 






11 


1 




2 


14 


14 


140 




7 


6 


7 




1 7 


14 


21 


160 


i 


11 


19 


3 




1 12 


23 


35 


180 


i 


16 


10 


5 




1 17 


16 


33 


200 


7 


13 


14 


1 




20 


15 


35 


220 


4 


9 


5 






13 


5 


18 


240 


9 


23 


10 








32 


10 


42 


260 


2 


11 


2 








13 


2 


15 


280 


12 


29 


4 








41 


4 


45 


300 


3 


9 


1 








12 


1 


13 


320 


9 


16 










25 




25 


340 


2 


3 


1 








5 


1 


6 


360 


1 


6 










7 




7 


No. of 


















schools 


54 


158 


108 


44 




»1 212 


173 


385 


Median 


270 


240 


160 


90 


( 


)0 240 


140 


200 


First 


















quar- 


















tile .... 


220 


200 


120 


40 


i 


tO 200 


80 


140 


Third 


















quar- 


















tile.... 


300 


280 


200 


140 


1( 


)0 280 


180 


260 


Number 


















of 


















periods 


















taught 


















daily . . 


7 


6 


4 


2 




1.5 6 


3.5 


5 



a day to supervision. The median principal for all schools of the 
380 reporting on this item gave 31 to 40 minutes a day to super- 
vision of instruction. For all schools reporting, 93 principals, or 
over 24 percent, gave less than 20 minutes a day to supervision. 
(See Table 12.) 

3° 



Table 12. 



-The Total Amount of Time per Day Devoted by the High 
School Principal to Supervision of Instruction 



Time in 


Schools 
less 
than 


Schools 
full 

4 years 


Schools 
50-99 


Schools 
100-149 


Schools 
150- 


Total 
of 

schools 


Total 

of 
schools 


Grand 

total 

all 

schools 


minutes 


4 years 
1-49 
(1) 


1-49 

(2) 


(3) 


(4) 


(5) 


(l)and 
(2) 


(3), (4) 
and (5) 





10 


30 


1 


2 


1 


40 


4 


44 


1-10 


7 


8 


3 






15 


3 


18 


11-20 


9 


13 


6 


3 




22 


9 


31 


21-30 


3 


19 


11 


1 




22 


12 


34 


31-40 


13 


39 


25 


4 


3 


52 


32 


84 


41-50 


5 


7 


6 


1 


1 


12 


8 


20 


51-60 




13 


9 


6 




13 


15 


28 


61-70 




4 


2 




i 


4 


3 


7 


71-80 


1 


9 


12 


4 


i 


10 


17 


27 


81-90 


1 


4 


8 


3 


l 


5 


12 


17 


91-100 


1 


2 


4 


2 


4 


3 


10 


13 


101-110 




1 




1 


1 


1 


2 


3 


111-120 




4 


S 


1 


1 


4 


7 


11 


121-130 


2 


1 




1 




3 


1 


4 


131-140 




3 


1 


7 


1 


3 


9 


12 


141-150 


1 




1 


2 




1 


3 


4 


151-160 






6 


2 


3 




11 


11 


161-170 


















171-180 






3 


4 






'7 


"l 


181-190 


















191-200 




2 


i 






2 


1 


3 


201-240 










2 




2 


2 


No. of 


















schools 


53 


159 


104 


44 


20 


212 


168 


380 


Median 


21-30 


31-40 


50 


81-90 


91-100 


31-40 


61-70 


31-40 


First 


















quar- 


















tile .... 


1-10 


1-10 


31-40 


41-50 


61-70 


1-10 


31-10 


21-30 


Third 


















quar- 


















tile.... 


31-40 


51-60 


81-90 


131-140 


151-160 


41-50 


101-110 


71-80 



Supervision of Instruction. — The median principal in schools 
with a high school enrolment under 50 gave one to 10 minutes a day 
to supervision of high school instruction, and 78 principals in 
schools of this class gave no time to high school class-room super- 
vision. The same principal gave from 11 to 20 minutes a day to 
supervision of instruction in the elementary grades, and 43 prin- 

3i 



cipals in schools of this class did no supervising of instruction of the 
elementary grades. In the schools with a high school enrolment 
of 50 and over, the median principal gave 11 to 20 minutes to super- 
vision of instruction in the high school and 31 to 40 minutes to the 
elementary grades. In these schools 11 principals gave no time 
to supervision in the high school and four gave no time to super- 
vision in the grades. For all schools reporting, the median prin- 
cipal gave 11 to 20 minutes a day to supervision of instruction in 
the high school and 21 to 30 minutes to the elementary grades. 
One hundred seventy-one principals, or over 44 percent, gave less 
than 10 minutes a day to high school supervision, and 91 principals, 
or over 24 percent, less than 10 minutes a day to supervision in the 
grades. (See Tables 13 and 14.) 



Table 13.- 


—Total Amount 


of Time per Day Devoted by the High School 


Principal to Supervision of High School Instruction 




No. of 


Schools 
less 
than 


Schools 
full 


Schools 


Schools 


Schools 


Total 
of 


Total 
of 


Grand 

total 

of all 

schools 


4 years 


50-99 


100-149 


150- 


schools 


schools 


minutes 


4 years 
1-49 

(1) 


1-49 

(2) 


(3) 


(4) 


(5) 


(1) and 

(2) 


(3), (4) 
and (5) 





25 


53 


8 


2 


1 


78 


11 


89 


1-10 


14 


35 


26 


6 


1 


49 


33 


82 


11-20 


9 


36 


27 


10 


5 


45 


42 


87 


21-30 


1 


10 


7 


3 


1 


11 


11 


22 


31-40 


3 


13 


18 


12 


3 


16 


33 


49 


41-50 




3 


6 


3 


1 


3 


10 


13 


51-60 


3 


4 


7 


3 


2 


7 


12 


19 


61-70 












1 




1 


71-80 






3 


3 


4 


1 


10 


11 


81-90 








1 


1 


1 


2 


3 


91-100 


1 




1 


1 


1 


1 


3 


4 


101-110 


















111-120 






1 








i 


1 


No. of 


















schools 


56 


157 


104 


44 


20 


213 


168 


381 


Median 


1-10 


1-10 


11-20 


31^10 


31-40 


1-10 


11-20 


11-20 


First 


















quar- 


















tile. . . . 






1-10 


11-20 


11-20 




1-10 


1-10 


Third 


















quar- 


















tile... . 


11-20 


11-20 


31-40 


40 


71-80 


11-20 


31-40 


31-40 



32 



Table 14. — Total Amount of Time per Day Devoted by the High School 
Principal to Supervision of Instruction in the Elementary Grades 



No. of 
minutes 


Schools 
less 
than 

4 years 
1-49 


Schools 
full 


Schools 


Schools 


Schools 


Total 
of 


Total 
of 


Grand 
total 
of all 

schools 


4 years 
1-49 


50-99 

(3) 


100-149 

(4) 


150- 
(5) 


schools 
(1) and 


schools 

(3), (4) 




0) 


(2) 








(2) 


and (5) 







10 


33 


1 


1 


2 


43 


4 


47 


1-10 


11 


20 


10 


3 




31 


13 


44 


11-20 


12 


35 


25 


4 


3 


47 


32 


79 


21-30 


5 


22 


15 


3 


1 


27 


19 


46 


31-40 


9 


30 


15 


15 




39 


30 


69 


41-50 


1 


3 


10 


5 


3 


4 


18 


22 


51-60 




4 


11 


3 


2 


4 


16 


20 


61-70 


1 


4 


1 


1 


1 


5 


3 


8 


71-80 




3 


6 


4 


2 


3 


12 


15 


81-90 


1 


2 


1 


1 




3 


2 


5 


91-100 






2 


1 


1 




4 


4 


101-110 


















111-120 




1 


4 


1 


i 


1 


6 


"7 


121-130 


1 










1 




1 


131-140 


















141-150 






i 








1 


i 


151-160 






1 




i 




2 


2 


161-170 


















171-180 










i 




i 


i 


No. of 


















schools 


51 


157 


103 


42 


18 


208 


163 


371 


Median 


11-20 


11-20 


31-40 


31-40 


50 


11-20 


31-40 


21-30 


First 


















quar- 


















tile.... 


1-10 


1-10 


11-20 


11-20 


11-20 


1-10 


11-20 


11-20 


Third 


















quar- 


















tile.... 


31-40 


31-40 


51-60 


71-80 


71-80 


31-40 


51-60 


31-40 



Time Given to Office Work. — The median amount of time 
given to office work, including clerical work, conferences with 
teachers and counseling pupils, was for schools with a high school 
enrolment of less than 50 pupils, 31-40 minutes a day and for the 
larger schools 71-80 minutes a day. For the smaller schools this 
is not a true index of the time taken up by clerical work in the 
office, as many principals reported that this was the time available 
for consultation with pupils and teachers and did not include the 
3 33 



time given to clerical work which was done after school, evenings, 
and Saturdays. (For details see Table 15.) 



Table 15.- 


— Total Amount of Time per Day Devoted by the High 


School 






Principal to Office Work 








No. of 


Schools 
less 
than 


Schools 
full 


Schools 


Schools 


Schools 


Total 
of 


Total 
of 


Grand 

total 

of all 

schools 


4 years 


50-99 


100-149 


150 


schools 


schools 


minutes 


4 years 
1-49 

(1) 


1-49 

(2) 


(3) 


(4) 


(5) 


(1) and 
(2) 


(3), (4) 
and (5) 





5 


15 




1 




20 


1 


21 


1-10 


7 


7 


2 


2 




14 


4 


18 


11-20 


y 


17 


6 


2 


1 


26 


9 


35 


21-30 


5 


21 


5 


1 




26 


6 


M 


31-10 


7 


22 


22 


5 


3 


29 


30 


59 


41-50 




9 


7 


4 




9 


11 


20 


51-60 


3 


16 


9 


3 


1 


19 


13 


32 


61-70 


1 


4 


2 


1 




5 


3 


8 


71-80 


6 


13 


14 


6 


3 


1') 


23 


42 


81-90 




2 


3 


1 


2 


2 


6 


8 


91-100 


1 


9 


5 


1 


2 


10 


8 


18 


101-110 








2 






2 


2 


111-120 




5 


7 


1 


1 


5 


9 


14 


121-130 






3 


2 






5 


5 


131-140 






2 


1 






3 


3 


141-150 




i 


2 




1 


1 


3 


4 


151-160 


1 


i 


1 




1 


2 


2 


4 


161-170 


















171-180 






2 


3 






5 


5 


181-190 


















191-200 




i 


2 


3 


3 


1 


8 


9 


231-240 






4 


2 






6 


6 


291-300 






2 


5 


1 




8 


8 


No. of 


















schools 


45 


143 


100 


46 


19 


188 


165 


353 


Median 


21-30 


31-40 


51 o() 


71 80 


SI -90 


31 40 


71-80 


41 50 


First 


















quar- 


















tile.... 


1-10 


11-20 


31-40 


41-50 


51-60 


11-20 


31-40 


21-30 


Third 


















quar- 


















tile .... 


51-60 


51-60 


110 


171-180 


151-160 


51-60 


111-120 


81-90 



Clerical Assistance. — One of the perplexing problems of the 
principal of the rural high school as forced upon the attention of the 

34 



survey field workers in their direct contact with the high school 
principal at work and as brought out in replies of 398 principals is 
the lack of clerical help. A great deal of the principal's time and 
energy is given over to the office work that should be done by a 
clerk. Principals reported that they spent Saturdays and evenings 
in making out and filing records and reports. Such work performed 
at the time it is cannot fail to operate against the efficiency of the 
principal's work as teacher and director of the school. It also 
means that insufficient records are kept in the majority of the 
rural high schools. 

In detail the facts reported by 398 principals show that 308, or 
over 77 percent, of them had no clerical assistance. Over 87 percent 
of the principals had either no clerical assistance or only the volun- 
tary, unpaid assistance of high school teachers. Six principals re- 
ported clerical assistance from pupils, fifteen principals got clerical 
assistance from teachers who received extra pay for this work, and 
31 principals had paid clerks for either all or part time. The follow- 
ing table gives the facts as reported by the 398 principals (Table 
16): 

Table 16. — The Clerical Assistance Given the Principal 





Types of schools 


Amount of clerical help 


1 49 
less 
than 
four 
years 


1-49 


50-99 


100-149 


150- 


Total 


None 

Pupils 

Teachers 

Paid clerks 


54 
1 
3 

2 

2 
2 


149 
1 
7 
5 
2 
3 

2 


74 
2 

25 
4 
2 
2 

5 


27 
1 

11 
10 

3 

7 

4 


4 

1 

7 

10 

2 

8 

2 


308 

6 

53 

31 


Full time 

Part time 

Teachers paid extra for 
clerical work 1 


9 

22 

15 








60 


162 


105 


49 


22 





1 Also included in data under teachers. 
35 



Direction of Pupil Activities. — The amount of time given 
each day to direction and supervision of pupil activities is remark- 
ably uniform for all principals reporting on this phase of their work. 
The median amount of time a day given to such activities was 1 1 to 
20 minutes, while 76 principals, 57 of them from schools with a 
high school enrolment under 50, reported no time given to pupil 
activities. This fact correlates closely with the facts shown by 
Table 28, which shows that the rural high schools of New York give 
comparatively little attention and emphasis to extra-class-room 
activities as a part of high school education. (See Table 17.) 



Table 17.- 


-Total 


Amount 


of Time 


per School Day Devoted by the High 






school Principal to Pupil Activities 






No. of 


Schools 
less 
than 


Schools 
full 


Schools 


Schools 


Schools 


Total 
of 


Total 
of 


Grand 

total 

of all 

schools 


4 years 


50-99 


100-149 


150- 


schools 


schools 


minutes 


4 years 
1-49 

(1) 


1-49 

(2) 


(3) 


(4) 


(5) 


(1) and 
(2) 


(3), (4), 
(5) 





13 


44 


to 


7 


2 


57 


19 


76 


1-10 


13 


18 


20 


8 


5 


31 


33 


64 


11-20 


5 


29 


23 


13 


4 


34 


40 


74 


21-30 


7 


15 


18 


1 


1 


22 


20 


42 


31-40 


2 


1° 


15 


9 


5 


21 


29 


50 


41-50 


2 


2 


5 


1 


1 


4 


7 


11 


51-60 


1 


9 


2 


1 




10 


3 


13 


61-70 




1 


1 








1 


1 


2 


71-80 






2 


3 








2 


3 


5 


81-90 






















91-100 










2 








2 


2 


101-110 








i 










1 


1 


111-120 


1 


1 


1 


1 






2 


2 


4 


121-130 








1 








1 


1 


No. of 


















schools 


44 


140 


99 


44 


18 


1S4 


161 


345 


Median 


1-10 


11-20 


11-20 


11-20 


11-20 


11-20 


11-20 


11-20 


First 


















quar- 


















tile .... 






1-10 


1-10 


1-10 




1-10 


1-10 


Third 


















quar- 


















tile .... 


21-30 


21-30 


31-40 


31-40 


31-40 


21-30 


31-40 


31-40 



36 






Time Devoted to Non-Pupil Activities. — The amount of time 
devoted to non-pupil activities related to the educational interests 
of the school was reported definitely by only 298 principals. The 
median amount of time reported by all schools was 21 to 30 min- 

Table 18. — Total Amount of Time per Day Devoted by High School 
Principal to Non-Pupil Outside Activities. (Data from 298 Schools 
Reporting on Item) 



No. of 
minutes 


Schools 
less 
than 

4 years 
1-49 
(1) 


Schools 

full 
4 years 

1-49 

(2) 


Schools 
50-99 

(3) 


Schools 
100-149 

(4) 


Schools 
150- 

(5) 


Total 

schools 

(1) and 

(2) 


Total 
schools 
(3), (4) 
and (5) 


Grand 

total 

of all 

schools 





3 


21 


14 


2 




24 


16 


40 


1-10 


4 


9 


6 


2 


1 


13 


9 


22 


11-20 


5 


17 


13 


6 


3 


22 


22 


44 


21-30 


9 


19 


15 


6 


2 


28 


23 


51 


31-40 


6 


9 


12 


5 


2 


15 


19 


34 


41-50 




6 


2 


2 


1 


6 


5 


11 


51-60 


6 


18 


8 


5 


2 


24 


15 


39 


61-70 




1 




2 




1 


2 


3 


71-80 




4 


4 


4 


i 


4 


9 


13 


81-90 




2 


1 




l 


2 


2 


4 


91-100 




9 


2 


i 


2 


9 


5 


14 


101-110 


















111-120 


i 


3 


2 






4 


' 1 


6 


121-130 


l 






1 




1 


1 


2 


131-140 




1 




1 




1 


1 


2 


141-150 




1 


1 






1 


1 


2 


151-160 


i 










1 




1 


161-180 




1 


"l 




1 


1 


3 


4 


181-200 




2 


3 




1 


2 


4 


6 


No. of 


















schools 


36 


123 


85 


37 


17 


159 


139 


298 


Median 


21-30 


21-30 


21-30 


31-40 


41-50 


21-30 


21-30 


21-30 


First 


















quar- 


















tile. .. . 


11-20 


11-20 


11-20 


11-20 


21-30 


11-20 


11-20 


11-20 


Third 


















quar- 


















tile.... 


31-40 


51-60 


51-60 


51-60 


81-90 


51-60 


51-60 


51-60 



Note. — Many of the principals reported that they did not give a definite reply 
to this item because they found it almost impossible to give an accurate estimate 
of the time. The majority of the principals of the smaller schools reported that 
all such time was given outside the regular school day. 

37 



Table 19. 



-Total Distribution of the Principal's Time During the 
School Day 



Time in 
minutes 


Teaching 

load of 

high 

school 

principals 
No. of 

principals 


Total 
time 
devoted 
to super- 
vision 


Super- 
vision 
of high 
school 
instruc- 
tion 


Super- 
vision 

of 
grades 


Office 


Pu 

act 

iti 


il 0ut " 
side 
IV- .. 

es a . c f tiv " 
lties 





14 


44 


89 


47 


21 


7 


6 40 


1-10 




18 


82 


44 


18 


( 


4 22 


11-20 


i 


31 


87 


79 


35 


/ 


4 44 


21-30 




34 


22 


46 


32 


4 


a 51 


31-40 


22 


84 


49 


69 


59 




34 


41-50 




20 


13 


22 


20 


1 


1 11 


51-60 


9 


28 


19 


20 


32 


1 


3 39 


61-70 




7 


1 


8 


8 




2 3 


71-80 


IS 


27 


11 


15 


42 




5 13 


si -go 




17 


3 


5 


8 




4 


91-100 


12 


13 


14 


4 


18 




2 14 


101-110 




3 






2 




1 


111-120 


14 


11 


1 


"l 


14 




4 6 


121-130 




4 






1 


5 




1 2 


131-140 


21 


12 








3 




2 


141-150 




4 






1 


4 




2 


151-160 


35 


11 






2 


4 




1 


161-170 
















4 


171-180 


33 


7 






1 


5 




6 


181-190 




















191-200 


35 


3 










9 








201-210 






















211-220 


18 




















221-230 






















231-240 


4_! 


2 










6 








241-250 






















251-260 


15 




















261-270 






















271-280 


45 




















281-290 






















291-300 


13 












8 








320 


25 




















340 


6 




















360 


7 




















No. of schools 


385 


380 


381 


371 


353 


3' 


15 298 


Median 


200 


31-40 


11-20 


21-30 


41-50 


11 


-20 21-30 


First quartile 


140 


21-30 


1-10 


11-20 


21-30 




1 1-20 


Third quar- 
tile 


260 


71-80 


31-40 


31-40 


81-90 


31- 


-40 51-60 



38 



Outside activities 




Total 330 minutes 

Diagram 5. — Distribution of the principal's time during the school day. 
Figures represent the median number of minutes devoted to each phase of 
his work 

utes a day. Other principals reported that they gave a large 
amount of time to such work, but did it all out of school hours and 
found it hard to give any accurate estimate. (See Table 18.) 
Table 19 summarizes the work of the high school principal for each 
day in the rural high schools of New York, and shows that the 
median principal gives each day five periods to teaching; one period 
to supervision of instruction, 11 to 20 minutes of it being devoted to 
the high school and 21 to 30 minutes to the elementary grades; 
approximately 50 minutes to office work ; 1 1 to 20 minutes to pupil 
activities; and 21 to 30 minutes to non-pupil activities related to 
school work. 

Teaching Load of Teachers 
The data on the daily teaching load of the high school teacher 
(not including the principal), as shown by the daily schedule of 913 
teachers in the New York rural high schools in 1920-21, shows the 
following facts: The median number of subjects handled by 
teachers in schools with an enrolment under 50 was 3.8, with over 
20 percent of the teachers in these schools giving daily instruction 
in five or more subjects. In schools with a high school enrolment 
of 50 to 99, the median number of subjects handled was 3.2, with 

39 



Table 20. — The High School Teacher's Daily Teaching La 

in Terms of — 

(A) Number of different subjects taught 

(B) Number of periods of class-room teaching 

(C) Number of periods on duty, teaching plus study-room su 



DlIRINf - ESSED 



jervision 



Number of 

subjects 

taught 

(A) 



Number 

of 
teachers 



Number of 

periods of 

class-room 

teaching 

(B) 



Number 

of 
teachers 



Numb 



period' 1 " ° f 



teaching 
study-n 



Hid 



supervisi ., 
(C) 



I. High schools with an enrolment of 1-49 pupils 



II. High schools with an enrolment of 50-99 pupils 



III. High schools with an enrolment of 100 and above 



Number 

of 
teachers 



1 


10 


4 


5 


5 


22 


2 


71 


5 


59 


6 


60 


3 


107 


6 


122 


7 


97 


4 


79 


/ 


S3 


8 


in 


.•> 


48 


8 


59 


9 


10 


6 


17 


9 





10 


v> 


7 


4 


10 


3 


11 


3 


8 




11 


3 


12 




Median. . .3.8 


336 


6.8 


336 


7.8 


336 



1 


18 


4 


14 


4 




2 


89 


5 


71 


5 


25 


3 


71 


6 


103 


6 


44 


4 


39 


7 


41 


7 


101 


5 


24 


8 


14 


8 


71 


6 


3 


9 


2 


9 


4 


7 


1 


10 




10 




Median. . .3.2 


245 


6.3 


245 


7.5 


245 



1 


70 


3 


4 


4 


1 


2 


126 


4 


31 


5 


56 


3 


87 


5 


97 


6 


96 


4 


32 


6 


133 


7 


124 


5 


13 


7 


60 


8 


55 


6 


4 


8 


7 


9 




Median. . .2.7 


332 


6.2 


332 


7.1 


332 





IV. 


Total for all high schools 






1 


98 


3 


4 


4 


1 


2 


286 


4 


50 


5 


103 


3 


265 


5 


227 


6 


200 


4 


150 


6 


358 


7 


322 


5 


85 


/ 


184 


8 


267 


6 


24 


8 


80 


9 


14 


7 


5 


9 


4 


10 


3 


8 




10 


3 


11 


3 


9 




11 


3 


12 




Median. . .3.3 


913 


6.4 


913 


7.4 


913 



40 



Per cent 
100 



Size of high schools- enrolment 
1-43" ' 5CP99 — — 100* 




100 



100 



50 











J 


erlods 


on dut> 


' (O 






Median 


\ 

N 


































\ 








3 < 


L 


5 


b 1 




& < 


i i 


11 



Periods 



Diagram 6. — The rural high school teacher's daily teaching load. (A) Percent 
of teachers teaching the number of subjects shown or more. (B) Percent of 
teachers teaching the number of periods shown or more. (C) Percent of teachers 
on duty, teaching and class-room supervision, the number of periods shown 
or more 



4i 



many giving instruction in as many as four and five subjects. For 
schools with an enrolment above 100, the median number of sub- 
jects handled was 2.7, with many giving instruction in four and 
five subjects. 

For schools with a high school enrolment under 50, the median 
number of recitations a day was 6.8. The significant fact here, 
however, is that 67 teachers, or more than 19 percent, taught eight 
or more periods a day, while eight teachers taught nine or more 
periods a day. In schools with an enrolment of 50 to 99, the me- 
dian teaching load was 6.3 periods, with 22 percent of the instructors 
teaching seven or more a day. In schools with an enrolment of 100 
and above, the daily teaching load was 6.2 periods. For all rural 
high schools the median number of recitations a day for each teacher 
was practically six and a half, with 30 percent of the instructors 
leaching seven periods or more. 

The median number of periods a day for each teacher in instruc- 
tion and supervision of the study room in the smaller high schools 
was 7.8, with 157 teachers, or 46 percent, carrying a load of eight 
periods or more. In schools with an enrolment of 50 to 99, the 
median number of periods of teaching and study-room supervision 
was 7.5, and for schools with an enrolment of 100 or more it was 
7.1 periods a day. For all rural high schools the number of periods 
a day for each teacher in teaching and study-room supervision was 
7.4, but with 287, or over 31 percent of the teachers reporting, hav- 
ing a daily schedule of eight periods or more given to class-room 
instruction and study-room supervision. (Table 20.) 

The study of the teaching load in the rural high schools of New 
York, both for principals and teachers, shows that it is far in excess 
of that regarded as standard in the United States. Many of the 
State departments of education are recommending in their State 
courses of study for high schools that five or six periods a day be 
the maximum teaching load for instructors in high schools. As 
examples, West Virginia and Virginia recommend five, and Indiana, 
New Jersey, Missouri, and Florida six periods. The North Central 
Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools recommends five 
periods a day for the high school instructor and will not admit to 
membership any school requiring more than six periods a day. In 

42 



the light of these standards New York conditions, particularly in 
the smaller schools, seem very unsatisfactory. This is particularly 
true of the schools with a pupil enrolment under 50. 

The number of pupils per teacher in the rural high schools of 
New York offsets in some degree the excessive teaching load as 
measured by the amount of daily teaching and study-room super- 
vision. The average number of pupils per teacher in the rural 
high school was 17, as compared with 28 pupils per teacher in a 
random selection of twenty-five city high schools of New York. 
While the number of subjects handled by the individual instructor 
and the number of periods of teaching in the rural high schools are 
very high, the number of pupil hours is comparatively low. The 
significant facts are, however, the wide range of subjects handled 
by the teacher in the rural high school and the large number of 
periods of class-room instruction. 

Size of Classes 

A large percentage of the classes in the smaller schools contained 
five or less pupils. A study as to the size of classes in 184 rural high 
schools (a random selection), distributed among the several classes 
of high schools based on number of high school pupils enrolled, 
showed the following facts. The median class in schools with an 
enrolment under 50 contained 6.8 pupils; in schools with 50-99 
pupils, 11.6 pupils; in schools with 100 to 149 pupils, 16.3 pupils; 
and in schools with over 150 pupils, 18.2 pupils. In schools with 
an enrolment under 50, over 36 percent of the classes contained but 
five pupils or less; and in schools with 50 to 99 pupils, approximately 
1 8 per cent of the classes contained five pupils or less . (See Table 2 1 . ) x 

It would seem that the problem of reducing the teaching load in 
the rural high schools is closely related to the problem of organiza- 
tion and administration of classes. It is probably not feasible to re- 
duce the number of subjects offered in the rural high school. In 
fact, if the rural high school is to meet the demands upon it, the 
number will need rather to be increased. 

If the rural high school is to offer an adequate range of subjects, 

its per pupil cost of instruction must undoubtedly be higher than 

1 For size of classes in different subjects see discussion on curriculum, Chapter V. 

43 



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44 



Schools with 

enrolment 

1-49 

Per cent 



20 



7 

ll-- 

15 To 25 30* 



Under 5 10 

5 to to to to to 
9 14 19 24 29 
Size of class 



Schools with 

enrolment 

50-99 

Per cent 




Under 5 10 15 20 25 30-. 

5 to to to to to 

9 14 19 24 29 
Size of class 



Schools with 

enrolment 

100-149 

Per cent 




Under 5 10 

5 to to 

9 14 

Size of claea 



Schools with 

enrolment 

150+ 

Per cent 




Size of class 



20 
to 
24 



12 

I 

25 
to 
29 



30* 



Diagram 7. — The size of classes in the different types of rural high schools 

45 



that of the city high schools. In many cases, however, it would 
seem that the classes with an enrolment under five might be met a 
less number of periods a week, and because of the semitutorial 
nature of such instruction still maintain a good standard. Another 
possibility of relieving teachers to some extent of the heavy teach- 
ing load is the alternation of classes. By beginning certain sub- 
jects, as French or Latin, every second year instead of every year, 
and by alternating subjects like third and fourth year English, as is 
now done in many schools in chemistry and physics, much economy 
in number of instruction hours might be effected. One or both the 
plans might be used in a small high school to reduce the number of 
hours of instruction and give the high school teacher more time for 
the preparation of his teaching plans, and, what is of almost equal 
importance, more time for the encouragement and guidance of pupil 
activities. 

Reorganization in the Seventh and Eighth Grades, either in 

the Modification or the Course of Study or of Organization, 

to Link Them up with the High School 

The information given by 405 principals in reply to this item 
shows that approximately 25 percent of the rural high schools have 
made no change in the 8-4 plan of organization to link up the ele- 
mentary grades closer with the high school. Approximately 75 
percent of the schools have used some plan to relate the work of the 
grades with that of the high school. An analysis of the means 
employed, however, shows that they are of the more doubtful types, 
both from the standpoint of increased interest on the part of the 
pupils and from the standpoint of the fitness of the means to the 
maturity of the pupils. Comments from several of the principals 
indicate that the underlying reasons for the most common change-, 
placing high school subjects, such as Latin and algebra, in the ele- 
mentary grades, were not those of better fitting the school work to 
the pupils in a vital sense, but to secure an extra year for elementary 
high school mathematics and the first two years of Latin and hence 
give the pupils a longer time to prepare for the Regents examina- 
tions in those subjects. Over 35 percent of the schools reporting 
were requiring high school algebra in the 8th grade and over 10 per- 

4 6 



cent of the schools were requiring Latin in the 8th grade. Ten 
percent of the schools were giving science, in nearly every instance 
high school biology, in the 8th grade, a doubtful procedure consider- 
ing the nature of the New York State course in biology. More 
vital changes reported by several schools were: promotions by 
subject, mentioned by 19 schools, departmental instruction, men- 
tioned by 33 schools, and sitting in the general study room with 
high school pupils given by 32 principals of the smaller high schools. 
Other means given were commercial subjects in the upper grades, 
drawing, literature, civics and history. (See Table 22.) 



Table 22. — Reorganization in the Seventh and Eighth Grades Either in 
the Modification of Course of Study or of Organization to Link 
them up with the hlgh school. (data from 405 rural hlgh schools) 



Types of schools 



1-49 








150 


pupils 

less than 

4-year 


1-49 

pupils 


50 99 

pupils 


100-149 
pupils 


pupils 

and 


schools 








over 


16 


46 


24 


13 


2 


42 


117 


89 


36 


20 


12 


20 












10 


5 


4 


1 


6 


2 


12 


6 


1 


1 


2 


3 


4 


3 


19 


13 


8 




14 


60 


45 
9 


19 


7 


4 


22 


13 




2 


3 


IS 


7 








21 


10 
1 


3 


1 


3 


11 


11 


6 




4 


4 


5 




4 


2 


7 


5 


3 




1 


2 









Total 



No form of reorgan- 
ization 

Using some plan of 
reorganization 

Upper grades sit with 
high school 

Promotion by subject 
in upper grades. . . , 

Departmental instruc 
tion 

Junior high school . . . 

Latin 

Algebra 

History 

Science 

Civics 

Literature 

Physical geography. . 

Commercial subjects . 

Vocational subjects. . 

Drawing 

English grammar. . . . 



101 
304 

32 

19 

27 

11 

43 

145 

9 
41 
25 
35 

1 
31 
17 
17 

3 



47 



Junior High School Organization 
In reply to a questionnaire sent out from the office of the Assis- 
tant Commissioner for Secondary Education, in February, 1921, ask- 
ing for information as to the schools having a Junior high school and 
their aims, methods and courses of study, twelve principals from 
the 609 rural high schools reported such an organization . Two schools 
of the 609, not reported in the questionnaire as having Junior high 
schools had a Junior high school in 1920-21. Thus in 609 rural 
high schools there were 14 schools having some form of Junior high 
school organization. 

The data from the 12 schools reporting to the Assistant Com- 
missioner for Secondary Education offer the following facts: 

A ims: 

Hold pupils 2 

Lessen pressure in the high school 

Departmental work 

Save pupils' time 

Flexibility of promotion 2 

Election of subjects 

Give more responsibility to pupil 

Pass preliminary subjects 

Supervised study 

Bridge chasm between elementary grades and high school 

Segregation of boys and girls in class and study 

Give some worthwhile high school work to pupils who plan to 
leave school early 1 

The following were the statements made in reply to the question 
as to course of study used: 

1. Same as State outline for 7th and 8th grades except algebra in 
8A. 

2. Regular 7th and 8th grade syllabus. 

3. Regular 7th and 8th grade work. 

4. Regular 7th and 8th grade work. 

5. Regular 7th and 8th grade work. 

6. Begin Latin in 7th grade, French, algebra, and mechanical 
drawing in 8th grade. 

7. Commercial arithmetic or algebra in 8A, commercial geog- 
raphy in 8th grade. 

8. Regular work plus domestic science, carpentry, civics, music 
and clay modeling. 

4 8 



9. General mathematics, general science, English, American 
history, drawing, and spelling. 

10. Algebra in 8th A grade. 

11. Regular work, also business writing, domestic arts, and 
chorus in 7th grade, business writing, domestic art, general science, 
shop work, and chorus in the 8th grade. 

12. No statement as to course of study pursued. 

The study of the 12 schools reporting shows that with the possible 
exception of three cases the Junior high schools are only nominally 
so and lack the fundamental characteristics of Junior high schools. 
The slowness of Junior high school development which has so much 
to offer in vitalizing education in the rural high schools of New 
York is probably due to two large factors: (1) The failure of the 
State Department of Education to assume leadership in the matter 
of Junior high schools in rural communities and to suggest ways 
and means of organization, and (2) in the rigid requirements of the 
State courses of study and preliminary examinations for the upper 
grades. No suggested curricula for Junior high schools have been 
offered by the State Department and indications are that the 
Junior high school has been discouraged in small systems, as a 
letter, Nov. 29, 1921, from the Examinations and Inspections Di- 
vision to a principal of a school with an enrolment of 158 in the 
elementary grades and 41 in the high school, called attention to the 
inadvisability of a Junior high school in a system of that enrolment. 

The study of the various phases of the rural high school problem 
in New York indicates the desirability of more closely articulating 
the high school with the elementary school. The development of a 
school organization and of curricula more vitally related to the needs 
of pupils in the upper grades and the first year of the rural high 
school should go far in bringing about such articulation. A secondary 
school system on the Junior high school plan or at least beginning 
with the seventh grade would seem to offer great possibilities for 
many rural communities. This would be especially true if the 
work of the first three years were designed to fit the needs, abilities, 
and interests of the pupils of the community and were not fettered 
by the traditional work in Latin and other foreign languages, and 
4 49 



mathematics as the core of the curriculum. Communities and 
local administrators looking toward a reorganization of their school 
system would undoubtedly receive much help if suggested plans of 
organization and curricula for Junior high schools based upon a 
study of the needs and resources of rural communities and the more 
generally accepted principles underlying the Junior high school 
movement were available from the State Department. 

It should be noted that some years past a committee to work in 
cooperation with the State Examinations Board to formulate a 
State course of study for the Junior high or Intermediate School 
was appointed by the Commissioner of Education. This Commit- 
tee made its final report November 29, 1921 . The following quota- 
tion gives the tenor of the report of this committee: 

"At the time this Committee was appointed, doubt was expressed 
as to whether we had progressed sufficiently far in the development 
of the Junior High School to warrant an attempt to formulate a 
State-wide course of study for this type of school orgam'zation. 
Subsequent experience has simply confirmed that doubt and this 
report is a recommendation that the attempt be abandoned and the 
Committee discharged. 

"Even under anything like normal conditions an experience of 
ten or fifteen years with the Junior High School would be little 
enough to warrant an attempt to formulate a State-wide course of 
study. Furthermore, it would be practically imperative that this 
experience include not simply the larger city school systems but 
that it include at least a few type communities throughout the 
State. It is reasonable to suppose that had it not been for the 
general retarding effect of war conditions upon public school de- 
velopment, the extension of this school organization would have 
been more widely adopted in the State than it has. However that 
may be, the fact remains that in the judgment of your Committee 
our experience is not yet sufficiently long nor sufficiently broad to 
warrant further attempt at this time to formulate a State-wide 
Junior High School course of study. 

"There is also another factor in this situation. Due to a good 
many causes, one of which has doubtless been the spread of the 
Junior High School unit throughout the country, rather intensive 

5° 



studies are now being made of some very important lines of work that 
affect this problem. This is particularly true of Latin, for example. 
Furthermore, there is a rather wide-spread uncertainty with refer- 
ence to the place and nature of such other subjects as general science, 
modern language, and mathematics. Serious thought and at- 
tention are being given to all these lines, and the reports which result 
should be available before the State itself specifically sets forth a 
Junior High School syllabus." 



5i 



CHAPTER III 

THE ADMINISTRATION AND SUPERVISION OF THE 
RURAL HIGH SCHOOL 

The Principal's Work as Director and Supervisor of In- 
struction in the New York Rural High Schools 

THE data given by 360 principals as to the number of meetings 
held each month for the discussion of the problems of the 
school, and by 296 principals as to the number of individual 
conferences with high school teachers each month, point to some 
interesting facts. Of the principals reporting, 78 reported no 
meetings of high school teachers and 160 reported one meeting a 
month. Over 65 percent of the principals reporting held only one 
or no meetings a month for high school teachers. Less than 45 per- 
cent held two or more such meetings a month. (See Tables 23 and 
24.) 

Table 23. — Number of High School Teachers' Meetings Held by Prin- 
cipal each Month. (360 Schools) 





Types of 


schools (on basis of 


number of pupils 










enrolled) 








Number of 












Total 












number 


meetings a 
month 


1-49 










of schools 


less than 


1-49 


50-99 


100-149 


150- 


reporting 




4 years 















45 


18 


13 


2 




78 


1 


8 


59 


56 


26 


11 


100 


2 


4 


16 


18 


13 


8 


59 


3 




9 


9 


2 




20 


4 


5 


21 


10 


5 




41 


5 




1 


1 






2 


Total 


62 


124 


107 


48 


19 


360 



52 



Table 24. — Number of Individual Conferences with Teachers Concern- 
ing Their Work by Principal Each Month. (296 Schools) 







Typ 


2S of schools 






Number of 
























conferences 
each month 


1-49 

less than 
4 years 


1-49 


50-99 


100-149 


150- 


Total 





12 


13 


4 




1 


30 


1 


6 


14 


11 


6 




37 


2 


2 


10 


19 


2 


6 


39 


3 


1 


8 


9 


2 


5 


25 


4 


7 


28 


15 


11 


1 


62 


5 or more 


2 


37 


39 


18 


7 


103 


Total 


30 


110 


97 


39 


20 


296 







Thirty principals reported no conferences with individual teachers 
on teaching problems, and one hundred and six, two or less a month. 
All the facts gathered from all sources, questionnaire to principals, 
data from field work on the survey with regard to problems of the 
high school principal in administration, organization, and super- 
vision, emphasize the same difficulties. In the smaller schools the 
principal is regarded primarily as a class-room teacher and has little 
defined authority as administrator and supervisor. His teaching 
schedule is so heavy as to give him little or no time for genuine 
principalship work. The most prominent problem coming from all 
types of principalships is lack of time for the administrative and 
supervisory phases of their duties. This, combined with the lack of 
specific definitions as to the principal's status in the administration 
and organization of his school, undoubtedly hinders the development 
of the most efficient type of principalship in the New York rural 
high schools. 

The problems taken up in meetings of high school teachers are 
important problems, but reflect in the main lack of attention to the 
means for modernizing and vitalizing high school instruction and 
high school government . The outstanding problems discussed were, 

53 



in the order of the frequency of their mention, pupil discipline, at- 
tendance and tardiness, retarded pupils, securing the interest of 
pupils in class-room work, and maintaining their continuous effort. 
Other frequently mentioned problems were home study, class-room 
management and methods, improving scholarship of pupils, the 
selection of text-books, promotions, and pupils' marks. Topics less 
often reported as the problems for discussion in high school teachers ' 
meetings were: supervised study, extra-class-room activities, the use 
of standardized tests in high school work, silent reading, the making 
of an assignment, the daily program, pupils' health, how to study, 
basis for admission to Regents examinations, the uses of the ques- 
tion in teaching, and character building. The latter problems are 
mentioned only sporadically and infrequently. 

As to the most perplexing problems of administration and or- 
ganization, the replies of principals showed extraordinary agreement. 
The most common problem, mentioned by practically 100 principals, 
was that of insufficient time for meeting their administrative duties. 
Closely related to it was the second most commonly mentioned 
problem given by over 70 principals, that of inadequate teaching 
force, and the third, the difficulty of securing good teachers, those 
with either professional interest or attitude. Two other problems 
given more than 70 times were the problems of inadequate room 
and library and laboratory equipment, and inadequate playground 
facilities. Other problems commonly stated were, in the order of 
frequency : lack of cooperation on the part of parents, securing the 
interest of pupils in a narrow classical curriculum, overcoming 
pupils ' aversions to school work, attendance, congestion caused by 
repeateis, lack of pupil social organizations, grading, scholarship, 
clerical help, and development of pupil leadership. 

From the viewpoint of a supervisor the problems in order of the 
frequency with which they were mentioned were: insufficient time, 
non-professional attitude of teachers, insufficient teachers, lack 
of interest on the part of pupils, scholarship, grading, heavy 
teaching load, over-ageness of pupils, crowded conditions, and 
discipline. 

The majority of high school principals offered suggestions as to 
steps that might be taken to improve rural high schools. In the 

54 



order of the frequency of their occurrence these suggestions were 
as follows: 

More vocational work, particularly agriculture and homemaking. 

Consolidation of school districts tributary to local high school. 

Better rural teachers. 

More teachers. 

Less emphasis upon Latin and other foreign languages. 

Wider curricula and more practical courses of study. 

More helpful supervision and assistance from state inspectors. 

More time for supervision. 

Larger units of taxation and equalization of taxes. 

Adjustment of high school curricula to local needs. 

Live Parent-Teachers' associations. 

More State aid for rural high schools. 

Longer tenure for principals and teachers. 

Junior high schools. 

Less emphasis upon Regents examinations. 



The Extent to Which the Principal has a Voice in the Selec- 
tion of Teachers and the Assignment or Work 
to His Teachers 

The data supplied by 389 principals as to their part in the selec- 
tion of their teaching staff indicate a lack of clearness as to the 

Table 25. — The Extent to Which the Principal has a Voice in the 
Selection of Teachers. (389 Principals) 



Voice in selection 
of teachers 


1-49 

less 

than 

4 years 


1-49 

4 years 


50-99 


100-149 


150- 


Total 


None 


24 
18 

10 
6 


51 
11 
47 

56 


6 

5 
33 

52 


13 
35 


1 
6 

15 


81 


Very little 


17 


Advisory 


117 


Recommends or ap- 
points on approval 
of board 


168 


With dist. supt 


6 


Total 


58 


165 


96 


48 


22 


389 







55 



principal's function. Ninety-eight principals or 25 percent report 
no or very little voice in the selection of their high school teaching 
corps; 117 principals or 30 percent report advisory voice; 168 
principals or 43 percent have either the power of recommendation 
or of appointing teachers subject to the approval of the school 
board. The larger percentage of principals having little or no voice 
in the selection of their teaching staff is found in the smaller 
high schools, while the larger percentage exercising recommenda- 
tory or appointment powers is in the larger high schools. (See 
Table 25.) 

In the assignment of work to teachers there is greater uniformity 
in practice. The majority of principals here have the deciding 
voice, although 49 principals, largely in the smaller schools, have 
little or no voice even in this phase of the principal's work. 
(See Table 26.) 



Table 26. — The Principal's Responsibility in the Assignment of Teacher's 
Work. (389 Principals) 





Types of schools 




Voice in assignment 
of work to teachers 


1-49 

less 

than 

4 years 


1-49 
4 years 


50-99 


100-149 


150- 


Total 


None 

Very little 


16 

1 

13 

25 

6 


18 
11 
33 
86 

4 


3 

10 
93 


3 
45 


5 
17 


37 
12 


Part authority 

All 

All in high school, none 

in grades 

With dist. supt 


64 
266 

4 
6 


Total 


61 


152 


106 


48 


22 


389 



The lack of voice which the high school principal has in the selec- 
tion of his teachers, particularly marked in the smaller high schools, 
has a very direct bearing upon the work of these schools. In the 

56 



first place, the teachers are elected by the school board, frequently 
with no definite knowledge with regard to the subjects which they 
must teach, or often as to the subjects which they are best prepared 
to teach. As a result the principal in organizing the work of his 
school often finds that he must assign to teachers subjects which 
they are not at all prepared to handle. In the second place, it takes 
away from the principal an important factor operating in the direc- 
tion of staff loyalty and cooperation, in that his estimate of a 
teacher's work in the school tends to have little or no weight. 
It deprives the principal of one of his most useful powers as the 
executive head of the school. 

State Inspection of Rural High Schools 
The total number of State inspections of high schools to May 25 
of the school year 1920-21, not including the visits made by the 
supervisory staff of the Division of Vocational and Extension 
Education, was 736. Of this number district superintendents made 
the inspections for 127 high schools and reported their findings to 
the State Department. A careful study of 108 of the inspections 
made by district superintendents in 1920-21 and of 86 inspections 
made by the Examinations and Inspections Division in 1919-20 and 
1920-21, indicates that the work is primarily and mainly inspec- 
tional in character and that it does not to any great extent function 
as a supervisory agent. This is probably as it should be. There is 
evidence, however, that the State Department does consciously aim 
to function in a supervisory way. The fact that the inspection of 
127 of the small rural high schools was delegated to the district 
superintendents in 1920-21, a large proportion of which inspections 
were made late in the spring, shows definitely that as a helpful 
supervisory agent the State Department is failing where help is 
most needed — in the smaller and weaker high schools. One in- 
spector writes in his inspection report of a small high school that it 
was the first inspection made by the State Department in that 
school in five years. 

An analysis of the schools inspected by district superintendents 
for the year 1920-21 shows that the schools were distributed as 
follows and were of the following types: 

57 



Center in which 


Type 


of school inspected 


Total 


located 


Junior Middle 


Senior 


High school 


Rural community 


15 12 


25 


17 


69 


250 or under 




1 


1 


2 


4 


250- 500 


2 


3 


6 


9 


20 


500- 750 


5 


1 


1 


4 


11 


750-1,000 






1 


1 


2 


1,000-1,250 












1,250-1,500 












1,500-1,750 












1,750-2,000 












2,000 2,250 












2,250-2,500 


1 






i 


2 


Total 


23 


17 


34 


34 


108 



An analysis of the inspections made by the State Department 
shows that the larger high schools receive much more attention 
than the smaller schools. These inspections are to a large extent 
inspections as to the teaching of some particular high school subject. 
Frequently they are made at the request of a superintendent or 
high school principal who wishes assistance in estimating the char- 
acter of the work of a particular teacher. The following random 
selection from schools receiving more than one visit in 1920-21 indi- 
cates the extent to which the attention of the State Inspectors tends 
toward the larger schools: 



Name of high school 



Horseheads 

Gowanda 

Huntington 

Lansingburg 

Gouverneur 

Hudson Falls 

Medina 

Lancaster 

Mynderse Academy, Seneca Falls 

Ilion 

Johnstown 

Little Falls 

Corning 

Glens Falls 

Lackawanna 

Newburgh Free Academy 

Lafayette High School, Buffalo . . 



Number of 
inspections 



Population of 
center in which 
located. U. S. 

census, 1920 



2,078 
2,673 
9,000 

? 

4,143 

5,761 

6,011 

6,059 

6,389 

10,169 

10,908 

13,029 

15,820 

16,638 

17,918 

30,366 

506,775 



High school 
enrolment 
1916-1917 



130 
57 
247 
243 
228 
249 
196 
86 
175 
351 
291 
203 
341 
337 
139 
590 
1,143 



58 



The above facts seem to indicate that the energy of the State 
Examinations and Inspections Division tends to gravitate to- 
ward the larger high schools. There arises a question as to the 
soundness of this policy. It is evident that these larger high 
schools, with their better equipment, better administrative and 
supervisory force, better teaching staff, and general advantages, 
should need less outside assistance than the small rural high school 
with its comparative lack of equipment, poorer teaching force, and 
inadequate organization from the standpoint of administration, 
direction, and supervision. 

A close study of the inspections made by district superintendents 
for 1920-21 yields the following facts as to points of emphasis and 
nature. 

Generally commendatory as to organization, discipline, and 

instruction 85 

Indefinite generalizations 31 

Detailed and specific 12 

Adverse in general 3 

Containing nothing on instruction 5 

Suggestions as to methods of instruction 8 

Suggesting more supervision by principal with no suggestions 

as to the way in which this might be accomplished 6 

Suggesting need of more teachers 10 

Pointing out inadequacies of building and equipment 12 

Reports of conferences with high school teachers 5 

Suggesting changes in organization 5 

A study of the inspections made by the State Examinations and 
Inspections Division indicates the following points of emphasis: 

Building and equipment inadequate 21 

Recommended reorganization of distribution of work to 

teachers 12 

Calling attention to school's standing in Regents examina- 
tions 11 

Suggested better methods of instruction 7 

Adverse criticism as to results in special high school subjects ... 19 

Favorable comment on work in special subjects 16 

Commended the school spirit 4 

Recommended new course of study 4 

Recommended the teaching of fewer subjects 4 

59 



The reports on inspections as made by the inspectors of the Depart- 
ment in the main indicate a broad conception as to the function of 
high school education and an earnest desire to be of service to the 
high schools of the State. As an agent working effectively, however, 
in directing and improving the organization and instruction of the 
rural high school, it seems inadequate because of the infrequency of 
the inspections and because of lack of direct and vital touch with 
the principal and teachers and their problems and because of lack of 
persons peculiarly fitted and specifically trained to direct in the 
general organization of the school and in improving class room man- 
agement and general methods of teaching in several subjects. (See 
Table 27.) 

Table 27. — Nature of Assistance Given High School Principal: (a) By 
District Superintendent (354 Schools); (b) by State Department 
(340 Schools) 

(a) Assistance from District Superintendent 



Types of schools 


No help 


Advises 


Supervises 


Visits 


Total 


1-49 less than 4 years 
1-49 
50-99 
100-149 
150 and over 


20 

32 
25 
15 


19 
59 
36 
15 
3 


6 
49 
16 

"l 


17 

29 
9 
2 


62 

108 

113 

49 

22 


Totals 


92 


132 


73 


57 


354 



(b) Assistance from State Department 



Types of schools 


No 
help 


Visits 


Inspects 


Supplies 
educa- 
tional 

materials 


Con- 
ferences 


Total 


1-49 less than 4 years 

1-49 

50- 99 

100-149 

150 and over 


30 

29 

12 

3 


7 

22 

17 

7 


5 
25 
23 

6 


14 
48 
21 
10 


5 
30 

8 
13 

5 


61 

103 

103 

52 

21 


Totals 


74 


53 


59 


93 


61 


340 



6o 



School Records 
Three hundred and sixty schools, or 90 percent of those reporting 
on the item of school records, use a cumulative record card system ; 
40 or 10 percent of the schools use some other method of keeping 
pupil records. Other forms of records specifically mentioned are: 
record book nine schools: Regents Record Book nine; Bardeen's 
Regents record seven; pupils' report cards six; class records one. 
(See Table 28.) 



Table 28.- 



-Types of School Records Kept on File in Local High School 
Office. (400 Schools Reporting) 





Schools 








150 




Types of records 


1-49 pupils 


1-49 


50-99 


100-149 


pupils 


Total 


kept 


less than 


pupils 


pupils 


pupils 


and 




4 years 








over 




No card index. . . . 


12 


22 


6 






40 


Cumulative card 














index 


42 


140 


107 


49 


22 


360 


Other recording 














devices 


Record book 


Book record 


Regents rec- 


Leighton 








4 


3 


ord book 5 


cards 3 








Regents rec- 




Leighton 


State form 








ord 4 


Report cards 


System 9 


Permanent 








Class record 


4 




book rec- 








1 






ord 2 








Reports 2 


Bardeen Re- 
gents rec- 
ord 7 

Academic 
record 
card 3 











There seems to be, with the exception of a very few schools, the 
practice of keeping only the pupil's academic record, and in some 
schools only his record in Regents examinations, where these are the 
only basis of graduation. In only a few of the rural high schools is 
a record kept of the pupil's activities out of the class-room or of his 
occupational and other experience valuable for guidance purposes. 



Pupil Guidance 
The New York rural high schools do very little in a definite or- 
ganized way in the matter of educational and vocational guidance 
of pupils. The systems of school records generally used do not give 
the material most useful in pupil guidance and undoubtedly the 

6i 



heavy teaching schedule of both teachers and principals and the 
lack of clerical assistance do not favor the development of definite 
plans for pupil guidance. 

Information supplied by 405 principals shows the following facts 
with regard to the status of pupil guidance: Two hundred and 
twelve schools or 52 percent use no definite plan of pupil guidance 
while 47 percent or l c >5 have organized, principally through the 
teacher's advisory plan, to give pupils guidance in their vocational 
plans and in the selection of their school work. Thirteen of the 
larger schools report courses or plans for courses in the study of oc- 
cupations; 74 schools are giving occupational talks to the high 
school pupils; 2o schools report the use of vocational reading; and 
39 schools mention observation trips taken with the view to giving 
vocational information to pupils. One hundred nineteen schools 
call attention to the fact that they give the pupil guidance through 
the regular high school courses, while several mention private con- 
sultations, motion pictures, and individual help. (^See Table 29.) 



Tabi e 29. \Y ws wp Mr usts or Pumi Guidance in \"kw York Rural High 
Schooi s. (405 Scho 



Plans i-t pupil 
guidance 



I J» loss 
than 4 > ears 



l 4» 



rotal 



No definite plan of 
guidance 

Guidance 

Teacher advis 

Course in study of 
occupations 

Occupational talks 

Vocational readings 

Observation trips. 

Other moans 



'5 
J 5 



Individual 
attention 3 

Pupils are 
too young 
1 



104 
58 
56 



17 
6 
10 

Motion pic- 
tures ' 

Parent- 
reachers' 

\".V. 1 

Lectures by 

business 
men 1 
Through reg- 
ular 
courses 59 



53 1 2 

oil .; t , 

60 

5 
35 9 

r. 
12 
individual help 13 

Private consultation 1 
Address from outside once 
a month. Through regu- 
lar courses oO 



212 
193 

l')0 

i.; 

74 
39 



62 




1-49 



50-99 100-149 



150+ 



Size of schools -enrolment 



Diagram 8. — Percent of New York rural high schools of different types having 

pupil guidance 



Supervised Study 
In the matter of supervised study the majority of New York 
rural high schools have taken no definite steps. Of 405 schools, 270 
or over 66 percent state that they use none of the regular plans for 
supervising the study of their pupils. One hundred thirty-five 
schools report a definite supervised study organization. Of these 
135 schools using a definite plan for supervised study, 64 use the 
divided period; 23 schools report a double period plan, although 

63 



the nature of this is uncertain, since only two schools were organized 
on the 60-minute period basis. Seventy-four schools have sched- 
uled conference periods with pupils. Twenty-six schools report 
supervision of pupils ' study by a teacher in the general study room ; 
seven schools give recitation periods to preparation of lessons; 
three have pupils go to teachers during teacher's free periods; six 
mention careful directions through the lesson assignments. One 
school is organized with a supervised study period at the end of the 
day, and one principal reports supervised study as unnecessarv. 
Table 30 gives the details as they were reported by the 405 high 
school principals. 



Table 30. — Schools Having Supervised Study and Plan Used. (405 

Schools) 





Schools 














1-40 












Plan used 


pupils 


1-40 


50-99 


100-14') 


150 pupils 


Total 




less than 


pupils 


pupils 


pupils 


and over 






4 years 












No supervised 














study 


45 


105 




28 


17 


270 
135 


Supervised study . 


17 


54 


38 


21 


5 


Divided period . . . 


8 


22 


22 


7 


5 


64 


Double period .... 




~6 


~8 


9 




23 


Scheduled confer- 














ence period .... 


9 


26 


18 


18 


3 


74 




62 


159 


113 


49 


22 




Other plans 


Principal 


Teacher in 


Study with 


Teachers 


Pupils in 






does 


study 


classes 5 


adapt 


study 






work in 


hall 6 




work to 


hall un- 






study 






classes 2 


der 






room 3 








teacher 

monitors 
1 






Try to 


Assign- 


Study hall 


Deficient 






pointout 


ment ex- 


teacher 


and 








special 


plained 


oversees 


younger 








things in 


2 


work 12 


pupils in 








lesson 






study 








period 2 






halls 3 








Study in 


Personal 


Period at 


Students 








class 


aid to 


end of 


keep rec- 








during 


pupils 3 


day 1 


ord of 








recita- 






time 








tion J 






spent in 








Pupil 


Vacant 


Unneces- 


home 








comes to 


periods 


sary 1 


study 1 








teacher 


of teach- 












1 


ers 2 











64 



Extra-Class-Room Activities 

One of the most striking facts coming from the study of New 
York rural high schools is the little attention and emphasis given to 
extra-class-room activities in their organization. This lack of em- 
phasis upon extra-class-room activities of pupils is somewhat offset 
by the general practice of high school assemblies. But notwith- 
standing the impression left strongly on the mind of the person ob- 
serving the rural high schools at work and in studying the facts 
with regard to their work is that there is here unused a great means 
of vitalizing the high school work, of improving the school spirit, 
and of giving New York rural high school boys and girls direct 
training in citizenship and avocational interests such as they cannot 
get through any study in the regular curriculum. It would seem 
to be one factor of great importance accounting for the magnitude 
of the problem of discipline in the high schools and for the general 
lack of spirit and interest on the part of high school pupils in their 
work so frequently found in all the comments of principals and 
teachers as to their most perplexing problems. 

One hundred and eighty high schools out of 405 report no extra- 
class-room activities other than athletics, Boy Scouts, Campfire 
Girls, and Girl Scouts, and these with the exception of athletics are 
usually directed in the smaller schools by some person outside the 
school staff. In almost no instance do the extra-class-room activities 
come in the regular school day, but meet predominately in the 
evening or in the afternoon after school hours. Table 31 gives in 
detail the nature of the extra-class activities found in the various 
schools and the number of schools reporting such pupil organiza- 
tions. Table 32 shows the times of meeting, the method of direc- 
tion or control and the nature of the responsibility of the teacher 
where the teacher has a duty in regard to them. 

High School Assemblies 
It is the general practice of the rural high schools to have high 
school assemblies once a week or oftener. Twenty-four schools, 
however, or over 12 percent of those reporting, state that they hold 
no high school assemblies. In the majority of schools these are 
mainly in the nature of opening exercises and come in the regular 
5 65 



Table 31.- 



-number and klnds of extra-class-room activities. (405 
Schools) 



Type of school 



1-49 

less 

than 

4 years 



1-49 



50-99 



100-149 



150- 



Total 



1. Literary Club. . . . 

2. Debating Club. . . 

3. Science Club 

4. Orchestra 

5. Glee Clubs 

6. Athletic Assoc. . . . 

7. Boy Scouts 

8. School Paper. . . . 

9. Campfire Girls. . . 

10. Girl Scouts 

11. Hi Y 

12. Dramatic Club. . . 

13. French Club 

14. Girl Reserves. . . . 

15. Class Clubs 

16. Thrift Club 

17. Woodcraft Girls.. 

18. Sewing Club 

19. Bird Club 

20. Social Circle 

21. Health Club 

22. Short Story Club . 

23. Latin Club 

24. Band 

25. History Club ... 

26. Oral English Club 

27. Art Club 

28. Radio Club 

29. Y. W. C. A 

30. Y. M. C. A 

31. Tennis Club 



3 
1 
1 

5 

3 
17 
1') 

8 
11 

4 



13 
9 
1 
22 
11 
85 
67 
37 
36 



15 

8 

3 

45 

36 

92 

55 

58 

30 

9 

2 

1 

3 

3 

6 

1 

3 
1 
1 
3 



9 

7 

1 

26 

17 

44 

26 

28 

21 

4 

3 

1 

1 



1 

8 

2 

21 

12 

24 

14 

18 

12 

5 

1 

1 

1 



41 

33 

8 

119 

79 

262 

181 

149 

110 

22 

6 

12 

6 

7 

14 

1 

3 

8 

2 

4 

4 

1 

2 

1 

1 

2 

1 

1 

2 

3 

2 



daily program organization and are of but ten to twenty minutes in 
length. They are almost invariably conducted by the principal or 
a teacher and consist in Scripture reading, singing, and announce- 
ments by the principal. In many of the schools pupils are re- 
quired to give in the assembly some form of rhetoricals once a year, 
and in 141 of the schools reporting, programs are given by the 
pupils. Fifty-one schools report talks, 10 mention music by the 
school orchestra and other pupil musical organizations; 18 schools 

66 



Table 32. — Extra-Class-Room Activities: Time of Meeting, Methods of 
Control, Nature of Teachers' Responsibility. (405 Schools) 

(a) Time of meeting 



Type of school 


Morning 


Noon 
hour 


Afternoon 


Out of 
school 
hours 


Time 

not 

given 


No extra- 
class-room 
activities 


1-49 pupils 

50-99 pupils 

100-149 pupils 

1 50 pupils and over . 


1 

i 


2 
2 


2 
? 
3 
2 


45 
66 
31 
16 


26 

15 
8 


146 

28 

7 

1 


Total 


2 


4 


8 


158 


51 


182 



(b) Methods of control and number of schools reporting each method 



Type of school 


Principal 
or teacher 


Parents 


Pupils 


Teacher 
or pupil 


1-49 pupils 

50-99 pupils 

100-149 pupils 

150 pupils and over 


57 
54 
26 
13 


1 

2 
2 


3 

4 

i 


14 

14 
6 


Total 


150 


5 


8 


59 







(c) Nature of teachers' responsibility and the number of schools reporting each 



Type of school 


Director 


Super- 
visor 


Adviser 


Leader 


Scout 
master 


Chap- 
erone 


1-49 pupils 

50-99 pupils 

100-149 pupils 

1 50 pupils and over . 


12 

15 

7 

2 


12 
12 
3 

2 


46 
42 
30 
16 


5 

7 

1 


8 


i 

1 


Total 


36 


29 


134 


13 


8 


2 



(d) Other social gatherings during the year under school direction, number given during 
the year, and number of schools reporting each number 



Type of school 




Number of such gatherings reported for the year 




None 


1 


2 


3 


4 


5 


6 


7 


8 or 
more 


1-49 pupils 

50-99 pupils 


65 

24 

9 


62 

4 

1 


31 
12 
11 


29 

14 

5 

3 


19 
12 
3 

4 


9 
10 

2 
I 


11 
9 
3 
4 


6 
1 
2 
1 


1 
19 


100-149 pupils 

1 50 pupils and over .... 


12 
6 


Total 


98 


67 


54 


51 


38 


22 


27 


10 


38 







67 



Table 33. — High School Assemblies 

(a) Frequency 



Type of 
school 


Daily 


Four a 
week 


Three 
a week 


Two a 
week 


Weekly 


Two a 

month 


Monthly 


None 


Total 


1-49 less 
than 4 
years .... 
1- 49 
50-99 
100-149 
150- 


20 
62 
30 
13 
6 


2 
1 
3 

1 


8 

25 
14 
8 
3 


9 

28 

24 

7 

4 


15 

29 

35 

5 

8 


i 


1 

i 


io 

10 
4 


55 

155 

116 

39 

22 


Total . . 


131 


7 


58 


72 


92 


i 


22 


24 


387 







(b) Length in minutes 








10 


15 


20 


25-30 


40-45 


1-49 less than 4 years. . . 

1-49 

50-99 

100-149 

150- 


26 
16 

7 
2 
1 


12 

75 

49 

15 

5 


6 

38 

31 

8 

4 


11 
16 
17 
10 
7 


1 

2 

5 


Total. . 


52 


156 


87 


61 


8 









(c) Method of conducting 



By principals 


By teachers 


By pupil 


By music director 


40 
91 
69 
24 
17 


12 
46 

27 
6 


4 

8 
7 

i 


3 
5 
4 


Total. 241 


91 


20 


12 



(d) Nature of exercises 



Type of 
school 


Scrip- 
ture 
read- 
ing 


Sing- 
ing 


Cur- 
rent 
topics 


Pupil 
pro- 
gram 


Rhetor- 
icals 


Talks 


Orches- 
tra 
and 
other 
pupil 
music 


Folk 
plays 


Prayer 


Mov- 
ing 
pic- 
tures 


1-49 less 
than 4 
years .... 

1-49 
50-99 
100-149 
150- 


33 
84 
60 
25 
12 


44 
127 
97 
37 
21 


6 
6 

5 

i 


13 

39 
57 
22 
10 


13 

25 
18 
9 
8 


19 
19 
10 
3 


i 

4 
3 
2 


4 

i 


29 
14 
3 
3 


2 


Totals. . . 


214 


326 


18 


141 


73 


51 


10 


5 


49 


2 



(e) Nature and amount of pupil participation 



68 



Type of school 


No 
part 


Very 
little 


Coop- 
erative 
control 


Plan, pre- 
pare and 
present 
program 


Make 
announce- 
ment 
pupil 
activities 


Select 
songs 


Supply 

the 
music 


1-49 
50-99 
100-149 
150- 


112 

35 

10 

1 


16 

7 
5 

2 


1 

5 
5 


34 

42 

17 

8 


10 

7 

14 

2 


1 
4 


5 
5 
1 


Totals 


158 


30 


11 


101 


33 


5 


11 



report current events as a feature, and five give school plays as 
features of the school assembly. 

As to the nature and amount of pupil participation in conducting 
the assemblies, 188 schools report that the pupils have little or no 
part, 121 report that the pupils plan, prepare and present programs; 
33 report that the pupils make announcements of pupil activities; 
1 1 that the pupils furnish the music, and 14 that the pupils cooper- 
ate with principal and teachers in controlling the assemblies. 

The school assembly apparently has a real function in the rural 
high school, but a study of its predominant characteristics leads to 
the conclusion that it might be of much more value if the proportion 
of pupil responsibility for its control and programs were increased. 
(See Table 33.) 

Community Organizations Actively Cooperating with the 

School 

Reports from 392 principals indicate that in many communities 
local organizations are actively cooperating with the principal and 
teachers in making the work of the high school and the grades more 
effective. The most prominent community organizations back of 
the school and its work, as indicated by the data, are the Parent- 
Teachers ' Associations and the Grange. Home and School Clubs, 
Women's Cooperative Clubs, and the Home Bureaus, are also 
active in many communities in advancing the work of the local 
high school. 

A significant fact, however, is that 59 percent of the principals 
report no organized community effort being made to cooperate with 
the efforts of the schools. Another significant fact is that the great- 
est lack of community support, as evidenced by active assistance 
given the school in meeting its problems, is found with respect to the 
smaller high schools with a high school pupil enrolment of 49 or less. 
In these smaller schools 66 percent report no active cooperation 
of community organizations as compared with 50 percent for 
schools with a high school enrolment of 50 or more. In the smaller 
schools, active community cooperation is much too rare, and for all 
rural high schools in New York it is much less evident than in the 
case of city high school communities. (See Table 34.) 

6 9 



Table 34. 



-Community Organizations Actively Cooperating With the 
School. (Data from 392 Schools) 



Type of 
school 


No 
or- 
gan- 
iza- 
tion 


Some 
or- 
gan- 
iza- 
tion 


Par- 

ent- 

Teach- 

ers 


Home 

and 
School 

Club 


Wom- 
en's 

Coop- 
era- 
tive 
Club 


Grange 


Home 
Bu- 
reau 


Com- 
mu- 
nity 
Cen- 
ter 


Wom- 
en's 

Chris- 
tian 

Temp. 
Un- 
ion 


Red 
Cross 


Alum- 
ni 

Asso- 
cia- 
tion 


1-49 enrol- 
ment less 
than 4 
vears . . . 

1 -40 

50-99 

100-149 

1 50-above 


37 
112 

55 
23 


25 
50 
55 
13 

15 


10 
19 

25 
13 
9 


20 


3 

10 

3 


8 
21 

15 
6 

5 


7 
4 


3 

2 


5 


3 


4 


Total . . 


234 


158 


76 


20 


16 


55 


11 


5 


5 


3 


4 



68$ 




1-49 



50-99 



100-149 



150+ 



Size of schools-enrolment 

Diagram 9. — Percent of New York rural high schools of different types having 

the active cooperation of community organizations 

70 



Most Frequent Ways in which Community Organizations Assist the 

Schools 

Prizes for school work 20 

Providing playgrounds and equipment 14 

School lunches 12 

Lecture course and educational speakers 10 

Health program 5 

Better home conditions 4 

School forum 9 

Furnishing aid to needy children 4 

Correcting a ttendance 4 

Social entertainments for pupils and teachers 4 

Visiting the school 5 

Written reports on school work 2 

Appeals Made by Principals of the Rural High Schools to 

Interest Pupils from Rural Schools in High School 

Education 

A little over 52 percent of the principals of the schools studied re- 
port no definite effort to interest rural children in high school edu- 
cation, while about 47 percent use some plan for getting them to 
attend high school. Thirty-eight principals make personal calls 
upon pupils ready to enter high school and solicit them personally. 
Eleven principals report that they encourage prospective high 
school pupils from rural districts to visit their high school and see 
what it is like. Other principals mention various plans for interest- 
ing rural pupils in continuing their education in the high school. 
(See Table 35.) 



Table 35. — Appeals Made by Principal of High School to Interest 
Pupils from Rural Schools in High School Education. (385 Princi- 
pals) 

Nature of the Appeal Made 



Type of 
school 


No 
appeal 


Some 
form 

of 
appeal 


Per- 
sonal 
calls 


Free 
tui- 
tion 


Urge 
pupils 

to 
visit 


Voca- 
tional 
courses 


Visits, 
talks, 
parties 


Can- 
vass 
rural 
schools 


Advo- 
cate 

benefit 
of 

educa- 
tion 


1-49 less 
than 4 
years 
1- 49 
50- 99 
100-149 
150- 


40 
85 
45 
28 
13 


20 
69 
55 
21 
9 


4 

14 

16 

3 

1 


1 
3 

2 


3 

5 
3 


3 
1 
18 
7 
3 


4 

1 
2 


1 
3 


1 

18 

16 

5 

3 


Totals 


211 


174 


38 


6 


11 


32 


7 


4 


43 



Note. — Three principals report that they mail handbooks of information on the high 
school offerings to prospective pupils; eight principals report use of the local paper to 
advertise high school education; five mention the Junior Project; two, high school exhibits; 
and seven, the influence of teachers and parents. 

7i 



The Regents Examination System and the Administration 
of the New York Rural High School 

One oi the most important factors in determining the status of a 
high school in New York is its efficiency in bringing its pupils suc- 
cessfully through the Regents examinations. To be recognized as 
an accredited school and be eligible for State apportionments it 
must make use of the Regents academic examinations, at least in 
the last two years of the school's course. It may promote or grad- 
uate pupils on the basis of local standards, but such pupils do not re- 
ceive the official recognition of the State. Quoting from Article 31 
of the Regents rules: "Success in passing the Regents examina- 
tions shall not be deemed necessary for the promotion or graduation 
of pupils from schools that prefer to determine such advancements 
by their own local standards." This option in the Regents rules 
has had practically no bearing upon the rural high schools with their 
limited curricula and their need of maintaining work meeting the 
demands of the State Department as measured by the Regents 
examinations. 

Undoubtedly it is highly desirable that a State should exercise its 
right to set up standards to be used as a basis for determining the 
status of secondary schools and for stimulating such schools to a 
better quality of work. It is not so clear, however, in the light of 
the comparative unreliability of any written test as a sole measure 
of a pupil's ability in a subject, that his successor failure over one 
or more year's work should be based entirely upon his showing in a 
written examination of an hour and a half or two hours in duration. 
Again it is more doubtful if the standardization of high school in- 
struction should be sought largely through the pupil, especially 
when such a means acts directly to the disadvantage of the pupil 
who is so unfortunate as to be required to attend a high school in 
which the teaching staff is composed mainly of young, inexperienced, 
and poorly trained persons. Finally, if the present-day aims and 
objectives of the secondary school are accepted, it does not seem 
probable that the uniformity in subject matter necessarily result- 
ing from State-wide uniform examinations is desirable. 

A study of the failures in New York high schools over a period of 
twelve years, 1^07 1918, shows: [D that the standard of difficulty 



in the Regents examinations in any high school subject fluctuates 
greatly from year to year, for it is not probable that the standard of 
instruction over the State as a whole varies to any appreciable ex- 
tent from one year to the next; (2) that the standard as regards 
different subjects for any one year or period of years is exceedingly 
different; and (3) that the percentage of failures in New York high 
schools is far in excess of any legitimate percentage. Assuming 
that the subject-matter in the subjects taught in the high schools of 
the State is adapted to the capacities and maturity of its pupils and 
that the instruction is of average efficiency, it would seem that any- 
thing above seven to 10 percent in the number of failures should be 
looked upon as a matter of serious concern. Certainly, a consistent 
policy of failing over 25 percent of the pupils each year in the rural 
high schools of the State, over a period of twelve years, not counting 
at all the significant mortality of pupils not permitted by the local 
authorities to enter the examinations, must be regarded as opposed 
t o all present-day ideals as to the aims and purposes of public second- 
ary education. In connection with this heavy percentage of failure 
must be considered also the effect upon the problems of pupil elim- 
ination and retardation, the heavy burdens in expense and energy 
in carrying on instruction for repeating pupils, and most serious of 
all the factor of discouragement fostered by such a heavy toll in 
failures. 

In the rural high schools the high percentage of failures among 
high school pupils brings in its train several very serious problems 
of administration and organization. In the first place the number 
of pupils failed in the Regents examinations does not give the 
complete story. Many pupils who have done the work in the sub- 
ject throughout the year are not permitted to enter the examina- 
tions, so the total number failing is materially above the figures al- 
ready given. Rural high school principals reported in many cases 
that they used a series of preliminary tests specifically designed to 
determine whether or not the pupils in any subject should be ad- 
mitted to the Regents examinations. One principal, proud of the fact 
that his school had but a small number of papers returned each 
year, showed his record of his first year Latin class from which he 



73 



had already eliminated (April, 1921) 50 percent <>i those who began 

I 111' \ (.11 III I ll.ll Mllljll I . 

lii rural high schools, particularly with an enrolment above 50, 
uiih .in already overcrowded teaching Bchedule, ii is commonly 
necessary yeai aftci year to maintain extra classes for repeating 
pupils in elementary algebra, elementary biology and less frequently 
in one "i more oi the othei subjects. Such repeating classes seri- 
* > 1 1 ily aggravate the already grave problems oi inadequate room and 
leu in i ig 1 1 H < r I n in.iiiri si hoolsi lasses are mu< h hampered by t he 
large numbers oi repeaters whose needs are hard to harmonize with 
i In' needs >>! those who are pursuing i ii<' Bubject for the firsl time. 

i in- fact thai ilif reports from the June Regents examinations 
are not In the hands oi the high school principals before graduation 
day has brought into existence diverse modes oi procedure in the 
rural high Bchools In the matter oi graduation, some oi them oi 
questionable soundness. Furthermore, there Is great lack <>! uni- 
formity in requirements foi graduation in the rural high school:.. 
What would seem to be .i questionable practice is thai »»i permitting 
.i | >u | nl to go through the graduation exert ises to receive an unsigned 
diploma which is ncvei signed unless 1 1 1 * * report from ili«' Regents 
exominat ions is sat isfai torj 

rin- following statements arc typical as to the procedure followed 
in i he i iii.il high s< hools: 

" \i .H iiii i H .i ho. 1 1 diplomas are not granted until tlu- final report 
ni .ill Regenl i examinations is received, though some students have 
been .i l low nl io go through the graduation exer< ises i onditionally," 

" Graduate conditionally and require Regents before the diploma 
i igned 

" i nsigned diplomas 

"Full Regents requirements foi graduation must be met before 
,, hool diplomas are gi anted. " 

Such conditions oi uncertainty on the pari of pupil-, graduating 
hum high si hool at the time oi graduation are to be deplored, li 
the polu \ oi State examinations foi promotion and graduation from 
rural high .hool. must be continued in New Vork, it is suggested 
eii hii thai the final examinations be given eai lier in the year or that 
the marking of the local principal and teacher should be accepted foi 



the lasl semester. A pupil, it would appear, should know with 
reasonable certainty at least a month before graduation time 
whether 01 nol bis four years ol work have beenoi b character t<> 
entitle him t<> a diploma recognized by the local school and l>y the 
State. 1 

In the Regents Rules, article 332 item (l)), rends in regard i«» the 
minimum passing mark in Regents examinations! 

"In .ill academic papers for credit toward an academii diploma, 
written l»y pupils who have given the required time i<> the si udy in 
recognized academic schools oO percent," and item (d) reads, 
"in all academi( papers written l>y pupils who have given the i«- 
quired time to the study, l>ui not in recognized academic schools 

75 percent. " 

Ruling (<l) seems to he placing .in unnccessMi ily heavy burden 
upon the pupil doing high si hool work in a small rural high si hool 
offering some hi^h school subjects but u<>t accredited. Such a 
pupil must puss the Regents examination in any secondary Bchool 
subject with ;i standing 15 percenl higher than that required of ;i 

pupil who lias st udied t he same suhject in an accredited hitfh school. 

If the examination is a fair criterion for estimating a pupil's pro 

h< iency in a suhject , as it apparent ly IS Considered, it would appear 
to he putting an undue hurden upon the pupil who happens to he 

attending a small rural high school. It is asking him to attain a 
higher degree of proficient y than is demanded ot ;i pupil presumably 

doing the work under the direction ol ;i IkIIci ten her ;ind with 

better equipment in a lully accredited high school. 

As an administrative means for standardizing the rural high 
si hool work of New York the system ol Regents examinations, at 

least as it now operates, seems to have lew points in its lavor. It 

tends i" formalize high school instruction and over-emphasize 
met hanical drill and vague objectives. It hinders the development 

Ol high Bl hool work in the dire< lion ol pupil and coiuiniinily need , 

1 That this i i a weal ness In the pre a nl system ol promotion and that it has 
been bo recognized by the State department <>i education li shown l>v the fact 
i ii.it the Assistant Commissioner for Secondary Education, then the I l<;i< 1 
inspector, called attention to ii In his report <>i 1897. In this report he tnadi 
recommendations looking toward the elimination in large i>;ot ot this weal n< 

in the system ol promotion. See 1897 Report <>i the Department ol Exai b 

tioni i page 90. 

75 



and gives but little opportunity for initiative and independent 

thinking on the part of high school principals and teachers. It de- 
mands an unreasonable toil in failures from the high school popula- 
tion and tends to destroy interest and encourages elimination and 
retardation. It places an unnecessarily heavy financial burden 
upon the schools of the State because oi the large numbers of re- 
peaters and seriously augments the teaching load in the rural high 
schools. And finally it places the measure oi success upon a basis 
which modern experimentation in education has proved unreliable 
and which is too narrow as the sole criterion of a pupil *s ability. It 
arrives at all its results in the direction of high standards at the ex- 
pense of the pupil and, finally, it seriously augments the adminis- 
trative and instructional burdens of the rural high school. 1 

Buildings \\n Equipment of the Rusai Hum School 

An important factor in the efficiency oi the work of a high school 
from its administrative side as it applies to the organization oi the 
school and to the control of instruction is the high school building 
and its equipment. Poor arrangement anil inadequate building 
and ground facilities hamper the principal and his corps of teachers 
in every direction. While there are some rural high school build- 
ings in New York well designed to meet the demands oi modern 
high school work, too large a percentage of them are ill fitted for 
the work necessarily undertaken in them. 

For the efficient performance of his duties as a high school prin- 
cipal the principal requires an office. He must, if he is to keep in- 
formed as to the work oi his school, have on tile sufficient data in re- 
gard to courses of study, pupils, teachers, and the many activities 
of his school. This material should be where it is available and 
safe. He also needs as the director oi his school a room where he 
may consult with patrons, pupils, and teachers {without interrup- 

:'• on the various problems that invariably arise. The principal 
in the New York rural high school lacks this highly necessary room 
in over 50 percent oi the high schools. 

A part of a high school's equipment not so essential as the prin- 
ter full discussion with statistics see Dr. kru-n-'s study. The State System 
oi Examinations, Administration and Supervision. 

70 



cipal's office and yet a valuable feature of every high school is a 
teacher 's room . Over 80 percent of the New York rural high schools 
are lacking in this respect. 

It is fully recognized that one of the functions of the modern 
high school is health education. The Committee on the Reorgani- 
zation of Secondary Education has placed health as one of the 
major aims of the secondary school. The realization of this aim 
requires both a gymnasium and playground space sufficiently ample 
in size for athletic fields. New York rural high schools were in the 
majority of instances constructed and located when knowledge of 
text-book material was regarded as the sole aim of the secondary 
school. As a result but few rural high schools are fitted to meet 
adequately the demands with regard to health education. Over 
cSO percent of the rural high schools have no gymnasium. Over 43 
percent have a play area of less than one-half acre; over 24 percent 
have less than one-fourth acre, and five percent have no playground 
space at all. In many instances when the space is sufficiently large 
the ground is unfitted for playground and athletic fields. 

With regard to school auditoriums, while some of the more 
recent high schools have good auditoriums or auditorium and study 
rooms combined, over 75 percent have no auditorium. With the 
increased attention to extra-class-room activities a school without 
an auditorium equipped with stage and curtains is seriously ham- 
pered in its work. It seems feasible also that the rural high school 
should become the center for many activities, including the com- 
munity as well as the school population. It demands for any ade- 
quate realization of its functions a room equipped for accommodating 
its entire school population and the patrons of the school. 

As concerns its work in the stricter sense, that of regular class- 
room instruction, the rural high school is inadequate. Twenty- 
one percent of the school buildings have but one class room in ad- 
dition to the study room. This necessitates the teaching of a class 
each period of the day in a room where other pupils are studying. 
Fifty- three percent of the buildings have only two class rooms in 
addition to the study room. 

The best type of high school education at the present time makes 
necessary much better facilities in the matter of library and labora- 

77 



tory. Without a good library for reference work and a laboratory 
equipped for demonstration and laboratory work in at least two 
sciences a high school cannot hope to give its pupils a high school 
education of a recognized standard. Instruction today in history, 
literature, the sciences, and to a lesser degree in the other subjects 
finds a good library essential. Science instruction should center 
around the laboratory. Practically all rural high schools have 
both libraries and laboratories, but too frequently they are poorly 
equipped, poorly arranged and inconveniently situated. The me- 
dian score of the New York rural high school library, not including 
its equipment of books and magazines, is approximately 5 of a pos- 
sible 10; and the median score of the laboratory i> 13 on the basis 
of a possible 20. In other words, the library and laboratory equip- 
ment, not including books, magazines or apparatus, is a little more 
than half what it should be if the rural high school pupil is to have 
advantages comparable to those oi the pupil in city high schools in 
the phases of high school work dependent upon the library and the 
science laboratory. 

Finally all facts indicate that the administrator of the rural high 
school labors at a great disadvantage in his attempts to give to his 
community the results from its school system that it should get. 
Close attention should be given in the future development of the 
rural high school to those factors oi building and physical equip- 
ment that are essential to the realization of an efficient high school. 

* For a detailed statistical studysee Dr. Butterworth: School Buildings and 
Grounds. 



8 



CHAPTER IV 

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE IMPROVEMENT 
OF THE NEW YORK RURAL HIGH SCHOOL 
WITH RESPECT TO ITS ADMINISTRA- 
TION AND SUPERVISION 

I. General Recommendations 
1. Every phase of the study of the New York rural high school 
emphasizes the need of well-defined objectives. While individual 
principals and teachers are doing excellent work, in general there is a 
very evident vagueness as to the ends to be sought. With the ex- 
ception of the one predominant idea, constantly in the minds of 
practically all principals and teachers, that they must prepare their 
pupils to pass the Regents examinations, there is a lack of clarity as 
to the functions of secondary education in rural communities and as 
to the organization adapted to realizing these functions. The rela- 
tions of the principal to the school board, to the community in 
which he serves, to his teaching staff, and to the pupils, are in no 
way sufficiently determined. His powers with regard to the curric- 
ulum and courses of study in his school are meagre and vague. 
His duties and powers as the local executive officer and the super- 
visor of instruction are indefinite. 

In view of these facts it is recommended that steps be taken to 
set up as clearly and specifically as possible tentative objectives as 
to the functions of rural secondary education and as to the duties 
and responsibilities of the several agencies and individuals working 
toward their realization. It is also recommended that a body be 
formed of persons fitted to undertake such a responsibility, by rea- 
son of their interest in and acquaintance with the problems of rural 
secondary education, to work in the direction of establishing func- 

79 



tional objectives for the rural high school and for ensuring changes 
as the needs of the future may require. 

2. Without specific agencies for keeping before high school prin- 
cipals in the rural high schools the latest ideas and means for im- 
proving their work, the preceding recommendation could not be 
effective. It would be necessary to bring principals and teachers 
in service in touch with developments in administration, supervision, 
and instruction. It would seem advisable to make more specific 
provision for the consideration of rural high school problems through 
such existing agencies as the State Teachers ' Association and the 
various local and regional teachers' organizations. These, how- 
ever, should be supplemented by agencies to be devised specifically 
for the training of rural high school principals and teachers in ser- 
vice. 1 

II. The High School Principal 
At the present time the work of the principal in the rural high 
school, if judged by the distribution of his time, is primarily that of 
a class-room instructor. While nominally he is the executive head 
of the school and the supervisor of instruction, both in the high 
school and the elementary grades, in practice he is given but little 
time for the many responsibilities that should belong to his position . 
He has no well-defined powers as the head of his school. As a 
result of the vagueness and indefiniteness of his position, he is 
often unable to initiate or to put into practice plans for increasing 
the efficiency of his school. In view of the present indefinite status 
of the rural high school principal, it is recommended that: 

1. There be set up more specific definitions as to the rural high 
school principal 's duties, powers, and responsibilities for the various 
classes of rural high schools, classification being made on the basis 
of number of pupils enrolled in the high school and in the elementary 
grades, where he is also in charge of elementary instruction: 

(a) as the executive officer of the local school board; 

(b) as the supervisor of class-room instruction; 

(c) as the director of the internal organization of the school; 

1 For more complete recommendations see Chapter V, The Teaching Staff, 
Article III of recommendations. 

So 



(d) as to his powers and responsibilities in relation to the high 
school curricula and courses of study; 

(e) as to the maximum amount of time to be given to class-room 
instruction in the several classes of schools; 

(/) as to the minimum amount of time to be given to supervision 
of instruction in the several classes of schools. 

(g) as to powers and responsibilities in relation to pupils and 
pupil activities. 

III. The High School Teacher 

With regard to the status of the teacher in the rural high school 
there is need of specific definitions as to his duties and responsibili- 
ties: The following recommendations are made: 

1. That there be set up definite standards as to the maximum 
amount of teaching to be permitted, in terms of recitation periods, a 
teacher in a standard or accredited rural high school. 

2. That there be formulated a clearer definition as to the relation 
of the teacher to the administrative and supervisory head of the 
school. 

3. That where the high school principal is also principal of the 
elementary grades, recommendation (2) be also interpreted to apply 
to the teacher in the elementary grades. This recommendation is 
made because of the lack of understanding in many of the smaller 
schools as to the relation of the teacher of the elementary grades to 
the high school principal. 

IV. Flexibility in the Administration of High School Cur- 
ricula and Courses of Study 

One of the problems of utmost importance in the rural high school 
from the administrative standpoint springs from the comparative 
rigidity of its curriculum. The Regents requirements for an aca- 
demic diploma are comparatively flexible. In practice, however, the 
emphasis placed upon certain groups of subjects, as the languages 
and mathematics, through the requirements for State scholarships, 
college entrance certificates, and suggested programs of studies for 
small high schools, have tended to limit the curricula of these schools 
to the older, more formal subjects. There is a serious question, in 
the light of the demands made upon the modern secondary school 
6 8i 



and the needs of modern life, as to the relative values of the subjects 
offered in the majority of rural high schools. If the high school is to 
meet the needs of the greatest number of its pupils, it would seem 
that the local high school should be encouraged to develop curricula 
adapted to its needs and given greater freedom in determining its 
curricula and courses of study. 

1. It is recommended that there be a limitation in the matter 
of State requirements in the rural high schools in required subjects 
and in the subject-matter of courses of study to minimum essentials 
in subjects vital to State and national citizenship and health, thus 
giving opportunity for greater initiative and freedom to local high 
schools in offering high school work meeting specific local needs and 
the major demands of the pupils enrolled. 

2. It is also recommended that all subjects of high school grade 
and taught by a qualified teacher be given equal recognition toward 
a diploma recognized by the State, provided that the State require- 
ments in recommendation (1) be met, and provided there has been 
continuity in the curriculum followed by the pupil. 

V. Junior High Schools 

The organization of secondary education with the Junior high 
school as the first unit should be of great value in Xew York. It 
is suited particularly to offer the rural pupil the opportunity of 
richer and more varied subject-matter two years earlier than is at 
present possible. It should bring closer together the elementary 
school and the high school and operate to reduce the elimination of 
rural pupils before reaching the high school. It should make high 
school education more available to rural pupils in many commun- 
ities by permitting the organization of a Junior high school where 
the community is too small to maintain a four year high school. 
In these smaller communities it would bring together a body of 
pupils large enough to make possible a better corps of teachers: 

1 . It is recommended that steps be taken to bring about the or- 
ganization of Junior high schools in rural and village communities, 
to encourage their development through State aid on the same 
basis as for the regular high school, and also making provision for a 
committee for the formulation of suitable objectives, of suggestive 

S2 



curricula and courses of study suited to the maturity and needs of 
pupils oi junior high school age, and with provisions for flexibility 
to meet the varied local needs and demands inevitable in a state 
like New York. 

VI. Inspections 

In a state the size of New York it seems impracticable for the 
State Department of Education to attempt the supervision of the 
high schools of the State. In the first place it cannot keep closely 
enough in touch with the local teachers to be in a position to under- 
stand their weaknesses and strengths, the necessary basis for con- 
structive supervision. In the second place it cannot know the local 
problems and conditions peculiar to communities. In the third 
place it is not economical either of time or money for all supervisors 
to go out from the State office to all parts of the State. Finally, 
granting that the factor of distance could be overcome, the burden 
of efficient supervision would be so great as to require an unwieldy 
central organization. 

It is necessary, however, that the State exercise some control over 
the local high schools. It is necessary that it act as a standardizing 
agent in some definite way. Because of its relation to all the schools 
of the State and because of its powers with respect to standards of 
work and of high school teachers the State Department of Educa- 
tion should function as an inspectorial agent but should not at- 
tempt supervision except as an incident of inspection. 

1. It is recommended that the State Examinations and Inspec- 
tions Division limit its function as regards the rural high schools to 
that of inspection only. 

VII. Supervision 

One of the most outstanding needs of the New York rural high 
school is that of supervision of class-room instruction. There is also 
needed to almost an equal degree supervision of school organization 
and the broader and more comprehensive phases of the work of the 
local school. At the present time the State Examinations and In- 
spections Division is unable to visit many of the rural high 
schools even once a year, as indicated by the fact that for the year 
1920-21 the inspection of more than 100 schools was delegated to 

83 



the district superintendent. The district superintendents in the 
majority of instances, with the exception of the smaller rural high 
schools, have confined their attention mainly to the one-teacher 
rural schools and to the elementary grades. The high school 
principal (see Fable 11) has been engaged mainly in class-room in- 
struction except in the larger schools. As a result one of the most 
important means of improving the quality of work done in the rural 
high school is very inadequate. 

Sympathetic, genuinely constructive supervision, which will 
operate to improve the individual teacher in service and which will 
also bring to the local principal a viewpoint broader and deeper 
than is possible in his limited held of experience, and which at the 
same time will be close enough to evaluate intelligently the local 
problems, is one of the great needs of the rural high schools in New 
York. 

To meet these needs the following recommendations are made 
for improving the supervision of the rural high school: 

1. That requirements be made upon the local principal for a 
definite portion oi his time, to vary with the size of his school, to be 
devoted to supervision, and that to ensure him the necessary time 
his work as a teacher be limited. 

2. That the superintendent of the intermediate educational ad- 
ministrative unit have as one of his duties the supervision of class- 
room instruction and school organization in the high schools within 
his district. With the provision that where the number of schools 
becomes too large or where the superintendent of the intermediate 
unit has his time fully taken up by his administrative duties, he 
shall be given the authority to appoint, subject to the approval of 
his board and according to the standards oi qualification of the 
State Education Department, a supervisor of secondary education 
for that administrative unit. 

VIII. BuiLDIXOS AND EQUIPMENT 

A school building, its equipment and grounds should be of such a 
character as to otter the most effective ami economical physical 
surroundings for the realization of the objectives of the school. A 
hisjh school building should be so constructed and ordered as to 



meet in an economical way all the demands of high school educa- 
tion. The equipment should be sufficient to meet the demands for 
efficient work in the various phases of high school instruction, both 
class-room and extra-class-room in type. The grounds should be 
ample for meeting the demands upon the modern high school in its 
work in physical education and training in habits of outdoor recrea- 
tion. Measured in view of these requirements, New York rural 
high school buildings and their equipment and grounds are in the 
main far from satisfactory. Some of the schools measure up to the 
standard and others fall short in certain particular details. The 
average of all the rural high schools is below any reasonable 
standard: 

1. It is recommended that more specific requirements be set up 
as to rural high school buildings and that adequate building, equip- 
ment and grounds for meeting the demands of secondary education 
be required for the accrediting of a high school. 

2. It is recommended that the nature of the equipment, particu- 
larly as referring to laboratory and library, its value for the work 
which the school does, be the basis of standardization rather than 
the total money value of the equipment, the present basis of ac- 
crediting the high school. 

IX. Extra-Class-Room Activities 
One of the most striking characteristics of the New York rural 
high schools is the comparative lack of attention given to pupil 
activities, both of a purely social nature and of a type primarily 
educational. In the schools where they are found such activities 
are usually regarded as extraneous to the real work of the school. 
While the nature of these activities, particularly those of a type 
mainly educational, is a curriculum problem, the manner of their 
control and organization and their relation to the other work of 
the school is a problem of administration. 

Because of the important place which extra-class-room activities 
are taking in the modern high school, and especially because of their 
value for pupils from rural communities in affording them actual 
practice in cooperative group activities, and finally, because of 
their value in building up a desirable school spirit and interest in 
the school, it is recommended: 

85 



1. That attention be given to this phase of rural high school 
work, and 

2. That guidance be given high school principals and teachers in 
rural high schools as to practicable ways of organizing the schools 
so that this phase of high school work may be given a place as an 
integral part of the program of the school. 



X. Pupil Guidance and Supervised Study 
In New York rural high schools a comparatively small percent- 
age have any definite organization either in the direction of offering 
guidance to pupils in their school work and life plans or in study 
under the supervision of the instructor. Because of the need of 
the former and the value of the latter, particularly for pupils be- 
ginning high school work, it is recommended that consideration be 
given to these problems of high school organization for the purpose 
of devising means for meeting them more effectively in rural high 
schools. 



XI. Financing the Rural High Schools 

The study of the financial support of the rural high school shows 
that under the existing system there is great variability in the 
burden borne by different high school communities. Some com- 
munities are assuming a financial burden for the support of their 
local high school that is excessive. Other communities with far 
greater taxable wealth and with relatively small high school popula- 
tions are able to bear the burden of their high school with ease. 
This lack of equality in the financial burden of secondary education 
is due largely to the small proportion of the cost borne by the State. 
(For full discussion, see Dr. Updegraff 's study.) To equalize the 
cost of rural secondary education in New York, it is recommended: 

1. That the taxation unit for the support of rural secondary ed- 
ucation be made large enough to include several high school dis- 
tricts. 

2. That in the distribution of State aid to rural high schools there 
should be a recognition of the principles set forth in Dr. Updegraff 's 

S6 



study of school support. In general this would mean that a larger 
proportion of the cost of rural secondary education be borne by the 
State than at present. 

XII. The Standardization of the Rural High School 
From every angle of approach the most important factor in the 
standardization of the New York rural high school is the system of 
Regents examinations. It colors every problem of administration 
and organization in the rural high school. It operates toward the 
formalization of all work. While public secondary education should 
select by differentiation among pupils, it emphasizes selection by 
elimination. Finally, the whole scheme of standardization of the 
rural high school of New York places the burden primarily upon the 
pupil. 

It is recommended: 

1. That there be formulated a plan for standardizing the rural 
high schools of New York, throwing the burden upon the State and 
the community: (a) through higher qualifications for high school 
principals and teachers and teaching means; (b) through more 
responsibility upon local principals and teachers for the promotion 
of high school pupils ; and (c) through closer supervision of the work 
of the individual teacher. 

2. That less emphasis be placed upon the Regents examinations 
as an administrative means for holding schools up to the standard, 
and greater emphasis upon the qualifications and professional 
training of the high school principal and teacher and upon instruc- 
tional equipment, and through more reliance upon helpful super- 
vision. This would tend to develop a more reliant and resourceful 
body of high school principals and teachers in the rural high schools. 
At the present time the school's success in the Regents examina- 
tions as the measure of the school 's efficiency puts an undue burden 
at all stages upon the pupil who is compelled to get his high school 
education in the smaller high schools under less efficient teaching 
and with meager instructional materials. It also makes the ob- 
jectives of the instruction in the rural high schools the passing of 
examinations and destroys flexibility and vitality of instruction and 
compels undesirable uniformity. 

87 



3. That more weight be given to the high school pupil's daily 
work as a criterion for promotion, thus encouraging consistent 
continued effort upon the part of the pupil and discouraging the 
forced cramming of the last month of each half year. 

4. That for pupils in the fourth year of the high school, and ex- 
pecting to be graduated, the work of the last term be accepted by 
the State on the basis of the pupil's ratings by the local teachers 
and principal. This recommendation is made because of the in- 
justice to high school boys and girls who in many rural high schools 
are permitted to go through the graduation exercises only to be re- 
fused a diploma later through the return of one or more papers 
from the State Department. 



ss 



PART II 

THE TEACHING STAFF; CLASS-ROOM 

INSTRUCTION; AND THE 

CURRICULUM 

CHAPTER V 
THE TEACHING STAFF 

The Basis of the Study 

THE study of the teaching staff of the rural high school is based 
in the main upon data from 416 principals and teachers com- 
posing the teaching corps of 123 rural high schools. Of the 416 
who gave practically complete reports, 123 were principals and 293 
were teachers. Forty- three counties are represented in the returns. 
While the data are from approximately only one-sixth of the rural 
high school principals and teachers in the State, they represent a 
large proportion of the counties and all types of rural high schools 
on the basis of number of pupils enrolled. Consequently, it is as- 
sumed that things true of the principals and teachers for whom data 
are at hand are true with respect to the high school teaching staff 
of all the rural high schools of the State. The soundness of this as- 
sumption in this case is supported by the fact that 63 questionnaires 
received after the first 353 had been tabulated resulted in no 
material change in any item. The assumption is further strength- 
ened by the fact that the data with regard to the academic training 
of the 416 principals and teachers studied are in close agreement 
with the data on the academic training of 2387 principals and teach- 
ers of the rural high schools in 1919-20. 

89 



l'he distribution of the -Flo teachers as to counties is as follows: 

Albany 5 Fulton S Otsego 7 

Allegany 5 Genesee 5 Putnam 5 

Broome 13 Hamilton 10 Rensselaer 2 

Cattaraugus 9 Herkimer S Rockland.... 17 

Cayuga 7 Jefferson S St. Lawrence ... o 

Chautauqua 2 Lewis 8 Saratoga 12 

Chemung.. 2 Livingston 11 Steuben 18 

Chenango 4 Madison 12 Suffolk 28 

Clinton , ; Niagara 20 fioga 8 

Columbia 10 Oneida 8 lister o 

Delaware. 32 Onondaga 10 Warren 6 

Dutchess 15 Ontario 12 Washington 9 

Esses 12 Orange 8 Wayne.. . 2 

Franklin 25 Oswego s Wyoming 7 

A or 
rhe median age oi the rural high school principals is 33.5 years. 
Practically one-fourth arc 28 years old or younger and one- 
fourth are over 43. For teachers the median age is Jo. J years. 
One-fourth are 24 years old or younger and one-fourth are >^1 or 
over. For both principals and teachers, the median age is J" 8 
years. One-fourth are 24.5 years old or younger and one-fourth are 
3(5 years of age or older. Comparing the rural high school 
teaching staff as a whole with elementary teachers in village schools 
of the State shows that the median age is approximately a half year 
less than that of the elementary teachers in village schools. Compared 
with the elementary teachers in forty New York cities of the third 
class, the median age of the high school staff is found to he more 
than a year (1J2) less. 1 As a whole. 35.5 percent of the rural high 
school staff are between the ages of 20 and 25 as compared with J 5 
percent of the academic teachers in the high schools accredited by 
the North Central Association: 62.2 percent are between the ages 
ot JO and 30, as compared with 53.8 percent for the teachers in 
the high schools accredited by the association.-' Excluding the 
principals, the median age of the rural high school teacher is two 
and a fourth years less than that of the elementary teacher in village 
schools and almost three J 8 j ears less than that of the elementary 
teachers in the forty New York cities. All data indicate that a 
'See Dr. Bagley's studj teachers and Teacher Preparation. 

eedings of the Twenty-Seventh Annual Meeting of the North Central 
Association of Colleges and S - wis Tart 1. 1922 





Tabi e 36.— Ace 


vr Nearest Birthday 




Age 


Princi- 
pals 


Teachers 


Total 


Percent 
principals 


Percent 
teachers 


Percent 

total 


20 




1 


1 




0.5 


0.2 


21 












2.0 


1.4 


22 




27 


27 




9.2 


6.5 


23 


•l 


47 


51 


3.3 


loo 


12.2 


24 


,i 


34 


57 


2.4 


11.0 


8.9 


25 


I 


2o 


2 / 


0.8 


8.9 


6.5 


Jo 


14 


25 


50 


11.4 


8.5 


0.4 


27 


5 


IS 


2^ 


4.0 


0.1 


5.5 


28 


s 


11 


1') 


6.5 


5.S 


4.6 


J ( > 


s 


S 


10 


6.5 


2.7 


5.8 


30 


o 


s 


14 


4.0 


2.7 


5.4 


31 





10 


lo 


4.9 


3.4 


5.cS 


32 


5 


2 


7 


4.0 


0.7 


1.7 


33 


5 


5 


S 


2.4 


1.7 


1.0 


34 


5 





14 


4.0 


5.1 


5.4 


35 


4 


3 


7 


.^.2 


1.0 


1.7 


36 40 


13 


^ 


55 


10.6 


7.5 


8.4 


41^15 


15 


11 


2o 


12.2 


3.8 


6.5 


46 50 





11 


20 


7.5 


5.S 


4.8 


51 55 


o 


5 


14 


7.5 


1.7 


3.4 


56 60 


3 


2 


5 


2.4 


0.7 


1.2 


ol andabove 


2 


1 


5 


1.6 


0.5 


0.7 


Not reported. . . . 




1 


1 




0.5 


0.2 


Median age 


33.5 


26.2 


27.8 








First quartile 


28.5 


25. S 


24.5 








Third quartile 


43.4 


31.3 


55 .0 









Age 


Per 




cent 


85 or 


6 


under 


48 


26-30 


33 
24 


31-35 


19 
10 


36-40 


11 
7 


41-45 


12 



46-50 ' 

4 

Over 50 \\ 
3 




principals ■■ 
Teachers j | 

Diagram 10. — Age of rural high school teaching stall 
0i 



large proportion of the teaching start" of the rural high school is 
young and immature as compared with the teachers in other types 
of schools. (Table 36.) 

Sex 

Approximately 70 percent of the teaching staff in the New York 
rural high schools are women and 30 percent are men. 1 Of the 
principals. SI per cent are men and 1" percent are women. Ex- 
clusive of principals, C >1 percent of the teachers are women. Con- 
sidering the rural high school start as a whole, the number of men is 
four less for each one hundred teachers than it was for village and 
rural high schools of the United States in 1917 IS. as reported by the 
United States Bureau of Education, or than it was for 25 city high 
schools in New York State in 1920-21. 

Table 37.— Six ok Teaching Staff 



Sex 


Male 


Female 


Percent 

male 


Percent 
female 


Principals 

Teachers 


100 

26 


23 
267 


81.3 
8.9 


18.7 
91.1 


Total 


126 


290 


30.3 


69.7 



M \rried or Single 
Approximately 65 percent of the principals are married and 35 
percent single. Eleven percent of the teachers are married ami 89 
percent unmarried. Of the teaching start as a whole, approximately 
27 percent are married and 73 percent unmarried. 

f ABLE 38. XlMKlK \\t> PERCENTOT IV UUINC. S r U'F MARRIED OR SlNGUE 





Married 


Single 


Not 
reported 


Percent 

married 


Percent 
single 


Percent 

not 
reported 


Principals 

Teachers 


79 
33 


43 
259 


1 
1 


64.2 
11.3 


34.9 
88.4 


0.8 

0.3 


Total 


112 


302 


2 


26.9 


72.6 


0.4 



Kaki v Environment 
From the standpoint of an understanding oi the rural high school 
and its problems the early environment of the principal or teacher 

1 This shows a larger proportion of men by approximately three percent than 
is shown by the reports of 405 principals of rural high schools as to number and 
sex of the high school Staff in their schools in 1 1 >J0 21, 

02 



is undoubtedly a factor to be considered. Teachers with a back- 
ground of rural experience should be better acquainted with rural 
life, its educational resources, and its problems and as a result be 
better able to relate the school work to the lives of the pupils and to 
the community. Of the rural high school principals, over 55 per- 
cent were born and spent their early life in the open country. A 
traction over 33 percent were born in a village, and between 10 and 
1 1 percent in the city. Of the teachers, 25. percent were born and 
spent their early life in the open country; almost 4(> percent were 
born in a village; and 28.6 percent in the city. In the case of both 
principals and teachers a small number of those born in city or 
village spent their early life in the open country. Taking the 
teaching stall" as a whole, the facts at hand indicate that approxi- 
mately 35 percent come from the open country, 42 percent from 
villages, and L^ percent from cities. The data show also that a 
much larger proportion of those holding principalship positions, 
generally men, come from the open country than of the assistants, 
of whom 91 percent are women. The majority of the men in the 
rural high schools are recruited from the open country while the 
villages furnish the largest proportion of women. 

Table 39. — Early Knyironment of the Teaching Staff 





City 


Born in 

city; 
early life 
spent in 

open 
country 


Village 


Horn in 

village; 

early life 

spent in 

open 
country 


Open 

country 


Not 
given 




No. 


Per- 
cent 


No. 


Per- 
cent 


No. 


Per- 
cent 


No. 


Per- 
cent 


No. 


Per- 
cent 


No. 


Per- 
cent 


Principals 
Teachers. . 


12 
SO 


10.5 


1 

4 


O.S 
1.7 


37 
124 


33.3 

45.7 


4 
10 


3.2 
3.4 


68 

75 


55.3 
25.0 


1 


O.S 


Total... 


92 


23.3 


5 


1.2 


lol 


42.1 


14 


3.3 


143 


34.4 


1 


0.2 



D3 



Place or Birth 
A very largo proportion of the rural high school teaching stall is 
native to the State. The data show that approximately 84 percent 
of the principals and $2 percent of the teachers were born in New 
York State. Of the principals, a fraction less than 15 percent, and of 
the teachers approximately 17 percent, 16 percent for both, were 
born in other states. Less than one and a half [\ A) percent of the 
rural high school stall' were foreign born. 



Table 40. — Flack of Birth ok Rural Hic.h School Instructors 



Place of birth 


Principals 


Teachers 


Total 


New York 


103 
10 

_> 
2 

3 

1 
2 


240 

12 

10 

8 

2 

2 

2 

11 
4 


343 


Pennsylvania . . 


22 


Vermont 


12 


Massachusetts 

New Hampshire 


10 

2 


Connecticut 


2 


New lersev 


3 


Kansas 


J 




j 


Other States 


12 


Foreign countries 


6 






Percent horn in New York 


83.7 

14.6 

1.6 


81.9 

16.7 

1.3 


82.5 


Percent horn in other States 

Percent born in foreign countries. . . 


lo.l 
1.4 



Foreign countries 
1.4* \ 




Diagram 11. — Place of birth of principals and teachers 
04 







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O O 










Z a 








hey; 










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■^p 


00 




cu 

C 


Og-3 


CN f*5 


cs 




a) C 
C o3 


00 r— 


Tj« 




U 73 


O wi 


^ 














bCJ3 


Tjt ro 


t^ 














u 

ft 


W~ 








O B 


■rf 1^ 


o 






CM ?N 


O-J 


H 


co 

•c 




so 








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95 



Nationality 

With respect to nationality, the teachers in rural high schools are 
predominantly of American stock. Approximately 86 percent of 
the principals and teachers have parents both of American birth. 
In 88.7 percent of the cases the father was born in the United States 
and the mother in 87.7 percent. (See Table 41.) 



Occupational Groups Furnishing the Rural High School 

Teachers 

With regard to the occupations of the father practically ^7 per- 
cent of the principals and 86 percent of the teachers gave the de- 
sired information. Of the principals reporting. 56.3 percent gave 
farming as the occupation of the father; 14.3 percent gave business; 
and 15.1 percent gave various callings of the artisan type. In 7. d 
percent of the cases the father followed one of the professions. 
in five percent his work was under the civil service, and in 1.7 percent 
he was a laborer. 

Of the teachers reporting, 3S.2 percent gave farming as the father's 
occupation; 29.9 percent gave business; and 16.7 gave callings of 
the artisan type. The father followed a profession in the case of 
11.6 percent of the teachers reporting. In 2.4 percent of the cases 
he was a laborer and in 1.2 percent he was working under the civil 
service. The data indicate that the teaching staff of the rural high 
school is recruited largely from the four general occupational groups 

Table 42. — Occupation of the Father 



Occupation 


Farm- 
ing 


Busi- 
ness 


Artisan 

trade 


Profes- 
sion 


Civil 
ser- 
vice 


Laborer 


Not re- 
ported 


Principals 

Teachers 


67 
96 


17 

75 


18 
42 


9 

29 


6 
3 


2 
6 


4 

42 


Total 

Percent princi- 
pals 1 

Percent teachers 


163 

56.3 

38.2 


92 

14.3 

29. 9 


60 

15.1 

16.7 


38 

7.0 
11.6 
10.2 


9 

5.0 
1.2 


8 

1.7 
2.4 


46 

3.2 

14.3 


Percent total . 


44.1 


24.9 


10.2 


2.4 


2.2 


11.0 



1 The percentages in Table 42 are computed on the basis of the number re- 
porting, and in Diagram 12 on the basis of total number studied. 

06 



Labor 2* y Not 
Civil >/\ indicated 

Service -~.X \ n£ 
2* 




Diagram 12. — Occupations of fathers of principals and teachers 

engaged in farming, business, work of the artisan type, and the 
professions. 

Parental Income 

To the question as to parental income, approximately 58 percent 

of the principals and teachers gave a definite answer. Many others 

reported it impossible to make an accurate estimate. While the 

proportion of teachers supplying data with regard to this item is 

Table 43. — Annual Parental Income 



Annual income 


Principals 


Teachers 


Total 


Percent of 
total 


Living 


3 


11 


14 


5.9 1 


$500 or less 


16 


13 


29 


12.1 


501-750 


11 


11 


22 


9.2 


751-1.000 


15 


23 


38 


15.9 


1,001-1,250 


21 


27 


48 


20.0 


1,251-1,500 


4 


1 


5 


2.1 


1,501-1,750 


1 


1 


2 


0.8 


1,751-2,000 


11 


44 


55 


23.0 


2,001-2,500 


1 




1 


0.4 


2,501-3,000 


6 


9 


15 


6.3 


3,001-1,000 




1 


1 


0.4 


4,001-5,000 


1 


2 


3 


1.3 


5,001 or over 


1 


^ 


6 


2.5 


Number reporting 


91 


148 


239 


57.5 


Number not reporting. . 


32 


145 


177 


42.5 


Approximate median . . . 


SI. 000 


SI. 140 


SI, 100 





pproximaie meuian . . . oi,uw oi.jw 01,1™ 

1 The percentages are computed on the basis of the number reporting 



97 



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99 



comparatively small, it is good considering the difficulties involved 
and the percentage of replies given to this item in similar studies 
that have been made. The data given indicate that the median 
annual income of the families from which the rural high school 
teachers come was at the time they began teaching approximately 
$1100, while one-fourth come from families having an income of 
approximately $1900 or more. In only 10 percent of the cases re- 
porting was the estimated annual income more than $2500. In 
general it would seem that the rural high school teacher comes from 
a family of moderate financial circumstances. 

Size of Family 
In general the members of the rural high school teaching staff 
come from families of more than average size, as shown by the sta- 
tistics either for New York State or for the United States as a whole. 
The median number of children for each family is approximately 
four (3.7). In one-fourth of the families there are fewer than three 
children and in one-fourth five or more. In 14.4 percent of the 
cases or in one case in 7 the teacher reporting is the only child "in 
the family," in 35.3 percent he is the oldest child, and in 23.8 per- 
cent the second oldest. (See Table 44.) 

Academic and Professional Training 
As to academic training, 56.9 percent of the 123 principals are 
college graduates. In addition to a college course 5.7 percent 
have devoted from one to three years to graduate work. Almost 
11 percent have given from one to four years to college preparation. 
Excluding those who have also done some college work, 17.9 percent 
are graduates of normal schools, and an additional 3.2 percent 
have taken one or two years of normal school training. With 
graduation from high school or high school plus one year in a high 
school training class as their maximum amount of regular academic 
training, there are 10.5 percent of the principals. Approximately 
one percent have had less regular academic training than a four 
year high school course. 

The proportion of teachers having college degrees is somewhat 
higher than it is in the case of the principals. Of the 293 teachers 



reporting, 64.2 percent are college graduates. 1 One and three-tenths 
percent have done one year of graduate work. Nearly nine percent 
have completed from one to four years of college work. Excluding 
those who have also done some college work, 19.1 percent are normal 
school graduates, and another 1.7 percent have spent from one to 
two years in a normal school. Approximately six percent have had 
no regular academic training beyond that represented by a four 
year high school course or high school plus a year in a high school 
training class. 

Combining the data on the academic training for principals and 
teachers gives the following results: Sixty-two percent of the rural 
high school staff are college graduates and an additional 9.3 percent 
have had one or more years of college training. Excluding those 
who have also had some college work but are not graduates of college, 
18.8 percent are normal school graduates and an additional 2.1 per- 
cent have given one or two years to a normal school training. The 
remaining 7.7 percent have had high school training or high school 
plus one year in a high school training class. (Table 45.) That these 
figures represent the status of the rural high school staff with respect 
to academic training is borne out by the data from 2,387 rural high 



Table 45 — 


Academic and Professional Traininc 












Normal 












High school 


school 




College 






work 






a 

V 

>> 


•a 








13 
V 




u 


u 
>> 


CO 

H 




H 

ClJ 


a 

V 


■0 

c 

a 

V 






3 


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'3 




>> 


3 




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Cfl 


c 


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s 




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In 

3 




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a 


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& 

J3 




H 


O 


H 


O 


H 





O 


H 


H 


u. 


O 


O 


H 


H 


Principals 


1 


7 


6 


3 


1 


22 


3 


7 


3 




70 


5 




2 


Teachers 


1 
2 


8 
15 


9 
15 


3 
6 


2 


56 


10 


5 


7 


4 


188 


4 






Total 


3 


78 


13 


12 


10 


4 


258 


9 




2 


Percent principals 


0.8 


5.7 


4.8 


2.4 


0.8 


17.9 


2.4 


5.7 


2.4 




56.9 


4.1 




1.6 


Percent teachers. . 


0.3 


2.7 


3.1 


1.0 


0.6 


19.1 


3.4 


1.7 


2.4 


1.3 


64.2 


1.3 






Percent total 


o.s 


A.<> 


3.6 


1.4 


0.7 


18.8 


3.1 


2.9 


2.4 


0.9 


62.0 


2.2 




0.5 



1 Principals and teachers having done graduate work are also included in the 
number of those who are college graduates. 



school principals and teachers of the State in 1919-20. Of the 
2,387, 63.3 percent were college graduates, 25.8 percent were nor- 
mal school graduates, and 10.9 percent were not graduates from 
either normal school or college. (Table 45A.) If in the case of 
the 416 instructors, the basis of the present study, the percentage 
of normal graduates who have done one or more years of college 
work, were added to the percentage given for normal graduates, 
the data for the two groups would agree closely throughout. 



Table 45A. 



-Academic Training of 2,387 Rural High School Principals 
and Teachers of the State (1919-20) 





Not graduates 

from normal 

school or 

college 


Normal 

school 

graduates 


College 

graduates 


Total 


Number 

Percent 


259 
10.9 


CI 7 
25.8 


1,511 
63.3 


2,387 
100 







Type of Certificate Held 

Of the principals, 54.4 percent hold some form of State certificate 

requiring as a minimum of preparation graduation from college. 

The remaining 2.5 percent who are college graduates hold normal 

or temporary certificates. Twenty-one and one-tenth percent hold 

Table 46. — Type of Certificate Held 



Type of certificate 


Principals 


Teach- 
ers 


Total 


Percent 
princi- 
pals 


Percent 
teach- 
ers 


Percent 
total 


College graduate, -j 

Normal certificate. 
State certificate 1 . . . 

Special 1 

Equivalent 

First grade 

Training class 

Temporary 

Rural renewable . . 
Special permit 


academic 65 

special 2 

26 

19 

1 
5 
2 
2 
1 


179 
9 

56 

25 

3 

11 
1 
8 

1 


244 

11 

82 

44 

3 

1 

16 

3 

10 
1 
1 


52.8 

1.6 

21.1 

15.4 

0.8 
4.1 
1.6 
1.6 

0.8 


61.1 

3.1 

19.1 

8.5 
1.0 

3.7 

0.3 

2.7 

0.3 


58.9 
2.6 
19.7 
10.6 
0.7 
0.2 
3.8 
0.7 
2.4 
0.2 
0.2 



Not based upon graduation from college. 



normal school certificates; 15.4 percent hold State certificates, 
either life or limited; 5.7 percent hold first grade or training class 
certificates. The remaining 3.2 percent are teaching under equiva- 
lent, temporary, and rural school renewable certificates. 

Of the teachers, 64.2 percent hold a college graduate certificate, 
academic or special. Nineteen and one-tenth percent teach under 
normal school certificates, 8.5 percent under a State certificate, 
either life or limited; approximately one percent hold a special 
certificate, not based on graduation from college. Three percent 
hold temporary certificates or special permits; and four percent 
have first grade or training class certificates. 

Age at Which Instructors Begin Teaching 
The data from the group studied indicate that one half of the 
principals of the rural high schools begin teaching at 21 years of 
age or younger; one-fourth at 19 or younger, and one-fourth at 23 

Table 47. — Age at which Rural High School Instructors Begin Teaching 



Age 


Princi- 
pals 


Teach- 
ers 


Total 


Percent 
princi- 
pals 


Percent 
teachers 


Percent 
total 


15 


1 


2 


3 


0.8 


0.7 


0.7 


16 


6 


3 


9 


4.9 


1.0 


2.2 


17 


4 


2 


6 


3.2 


0.7 


1.4 


18 


23 


29 


52 


18.7 


9.9 


12.5 


19 


7 


32 


39 


5.7 


10.9 


9.4 


20 


15 


35 


50 


12.2 


11.9 


12.0 


21 


14 


55 


69 


11.4 


18.8 


16.6 


22 


12 


73 


85 


9.8 


25.0 


20.4 


23 


12 


36 


48 


9.8 


12.3 


11.5 


24 


8 


15 


23 


6.5 


5.1 


5.5 


25 


10 


4 


14 


8.3 


1.4 


3.4 


26 


1 


2 


3 


0.8 


0.7 


0.7 


27 


1 


1 


2 


0.8 


0.3 


0.5 


28 


1 


1 


2 


0.8 


0.3 


0.5 


29 


2 


1 


3 


1.6 


0.3 


0.7 


30 


1 


1 


2 


0.8 


0.3 


0.5 


31-35 














36-40 




1 


1 




0.3 


0.2 


41-45 


1 




1 


0.8 




0.2 


Not reported 


4 




4 


3.2 




1.0 


Median age 


21.2 


21.7 


21.6 








First quartile 


18.8 


20.1 


19.8 








Third quartile. . . . 


23.6 


22.8 


22.9 









103 



years of age or older. The median age at which the high school 
instructor begins teaching is 21.7 years. One-fourth of the in- 
structors begin teaching at 20 or younger and one-fourth at 23 or 
older. For the teaching staff as a whole, the median age for be- 
ginning teaching is 21.6 years. One-fourth begin teaching at the 
age of 20 or under and one-fourth at 23 or over. 



Number of Years' Teaching Experience 
As to teaching experience, the median principal has had 8.6 years. 
One-fourth of the principals have had less than five years' experience 
and approximately one-fourth have had 18 years or more. The 

Table 48. — Number of Years' Teaching Experience 



Number of years 


Princi- 
pals 


Teach- 
ers 


Total 


Percent 
princi- 
pals 


Percent 
teachers 


Percent 
total 


1 


11 


74 


85 


8.9 


25.3 


20.4 


2 


6 


42 


48 


4.9 


14.3 


11.5 


3 


5 


31 


36 


4.0 


10.6 


8.6 


4 


7 


25 


32 


5.7 


8.5 


7.7 


5 


13 


20 


33 


10.6 


6.8 


7.9 


6 


6 


17 


23 


4.9 


5.8 


5.5 


7 


11 


11 


22 


8.9 


3.8 


5.3 


8 


2 


7 


9 


1.6 


2.4 


2.2 


9 


4 


6 


10 


3.2 


2.0 


2.4 


10 


4 


4 


8 


3.2 


1.4 


2.0 


11 


6 


4 


10 


4.9 


1.4 


2.4 


12 


4 


3 


7 


3.2 


1.0 


1.7 


13 


2 


2 


4 


1.6 


0.7 


0.9 


14 


2 


5 


7 


1.6 


1.7 


1.7 


15 


1 


4 


5 


0.8 


1.4 


1.2 


16-20 


17 


15 


32 


13.8 


5.1 


7.7 


21-25 


7 


12 


19 


5.7 


4.1 


4.6 


26-30 


7 


9 


16 


5.7 


3.1 


3.8 


31-35 


6 


2 


8 


4.9 


0.7 


2.0 


36 and over 


2 




2 


1.6 




0.5 


Median 1 


8.6 


3.4 


4.7 








First quartile 


4.6 


1.4 


1.9 








Third quartile .... 


17.9 


7.5 


11.1 









1 From the fact that the data were gathered at the close of the school year 
and that the teachers quite generally reported the year just being completed as 
one year's experience, and also from the fact that anything over a half-year was 
counted as a year, the median was computed from the mid-point between years. 

104 



median teacher has had 3.4 years of teaching experience, one-fourth 
have had less than a year and a half, and one-fourth have taught 
more than seven years. For both principals and teachers the me- 
dian teaching experience is 4.7 years, with one-fourth having had two 
years or less and one-fourth eleven years or more. Forty-eight 
percent have taught less than five years as compared with 42.5 per- 
cent for the teachers in high schools accredited by the North Central 
Association of colleges and secondary schools. The most noticeable 
facts about the principals and teachers of the New York rural high 
schools from the standpoint of experience are: (1) The wide range 
in number of years running from less than one year to 41 years; 
and (2) the fact that one-half have had less than five years of ex- 
perience, while one-fourth have taught two years or less. These 
facts as to the large number of young, inexperienced principals and 
teachers in the small rural high schools, combined with other facts 
gathered from the actual visitation of over 70 rural high schools, 
indicate among other things that the rural high schools furnish 
apprenticeship teaching for the larger high schools of the State. 

Number of Years in Present Position 
An important factor in the work of a school is the permanency of 
its teaching personnel. A large proportion of new teachers each 
year is undesirable even though they are teachers of experience. 
The data collected from the group forming the basis of this study, as 
well as the impression gained from the visitation of rural high schools, 
indicate that instructors remain as a general thing but a year or two 
in the same school. Over 31 percent 1 of the principals and 49 
percent of the teachers, or 44 percent for both, were teaching their 
first year in the particular high school where they were at the time 
of making the report. Over 19 percent of the principals and prac- 
tically 26 percent of the teachers, or 24 percent for both, were teach- 
ing their second year in the same school. Over 89 percent of the 
high school staff had been in their present positions five years or less, 
while 79 percent had been in their present positions three years or 

1 Approximately 33 percent of the principals of the rural high schools were 
serving their first year in their position in 1921-22, as shown by comparing the 
1920 and the 1921 Directories of the University of the State of New York. 

i°5 



less. These figures agree very closely with the facts found with 
regard to tenure of all secondary school teachers in Livingston 
County, where 55 percent were teaching their first year in the 
school. 1 

Table 49. — Number of Years in Present Position 



Number of years 


Princi- 
pals 


Teach- 
ers 


Total 


Percent 
princi- 
pals 


Percent 
teachers 


Percent 
total 


1 


39 


144 


183 


31.7 


49.1 


44.0 


2 


24 


76 


100 


19.5 


25.9 


24.0 


3 


19 


27 


46 


15.4 


9.2 


11.1 


4 


15 


10 


25 


12.9 


3.4 


6.0 


5 


10 


5 


15 


8.1 


1.7 


3.6 


6 


6 


3 


9 


4.9 


1.0 


2.2 


7 


3 


7 


10 


2.4 


2.4 


2.4 


8 


1 


1 


2 


0.8 


0.3 


0.5 


9 




3 


3 




1.0 


0.8 


10 


1 


3 


4 


0.8 


1.0 


0.9 


11 


1 




1 


0.8 




0.2 


12 


1 


2 


3 


0.8 


0.7 


0.8 


13 




2 


2 




0.7 


0.5 


14 


1 




1 


0.8 




0.2 


15 














16-20 


1 


4 


5 


0.8 


1.3 


1.2 


21-25 


1 


3 


4 


0.8 


1.0 


0.9 


26-30 




1 


1 




0.3 


0.2 


Not reported 




2 


2 




0.7 


0.5 



Number of Months Employed 
The teaching corps of the rural high school are commonly em- 
ployed for ten months, 95 percent (94.7) teaching on that basis. 
Less than three percent of those reporting (2.6) were employed the 
full twelve months, these being in nearly every instance principals 
and teachers giving instruction in vocational agriculture. Almost 
three percent (2.7) were employed for less than 10 months of the 

year. 

Table 50. — Number of Months Employed 



Number of months . . . 


9 


9.5 


10 


11 


12 


Principals 

Teachers 


9 


2 


120 
274 




3 
8 


Total 

Percent of total 


9 

2.2 


2 
0.5 


394 
94.7 




11 
2.6 



1 Livingston County Survey, University of the State of New York, Bulletin 
738, p. 91. 

106 



Per cent 
20- 



Teaching experience 




1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16-20 Over 



Years 



21 



Number of year9 in present position 




jcn a 



1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16-20 Over 

21 
Years 

Diagram 13. — Teaching experience and number of years in present position of 
rural high school teachers 



107 



Salary 

The data from the 123 principals reporting indicate that the 
salaries for rural high school principals for 1920-21 ranged from 
$900 to $3200. The median salary was approximately $1750, 
while one-fourth of the principals received $1500 or less and one- 
fourth $2040 or more. For teachers the range was from $750 to 
$2500. One-half of the teachers received a salary of less than $1225; 
one-fourth received less than $1120 and one-fourth over $1335. 

A comparison of these figures with the 1919-20 salaries of 1784 
rural high school teachers and 603 rural high school principals of 
the State shows an increase in 1920-21 over 1919-20 of $287.40 in 
the median salary of teachers and of $207.30 in the median salary of 
principals. These facts would seem to indicate that teachers re- 



TABLE51.- 



-Salaries of 416 Rural High School Principals and Teachers 
in 1920-21 



Amount 


Number 

of 
principals 


Number 

of 
teachers 


Amount 


Number 

of 
principals 


Number 

of 
teachers 


received 


received 


$750- $799 




1 


$2,000-2,049 


12 


2 


800- 849 




1 


2,050-2,099 






850- 899 






2,100-2,149 


4 


1 


900- 949 


3 


7 


2,150-2,199 






950- 999 




1 


2,200-2,249 


6 


1 


1,000-1,049 


4 


34 


2,250-2,299 


1 




1,050-1,099 


1 


14 


2,300-2,349 


1 




1,100-1,149 




43 


2,350-2,399 






1,150-1,199 


1 


11 


2,400-2,449 




1 


1,200-1,249 


4 


76 


2,450-2,499 






1,250-1,299 


2 


9 


2,500-2,599 


5 


1 


1,300-1,349 


2 


32 


2,600-2,699 


3 




1,350-1,399 


1 


5 


2,700-2,799 


1 




1,400-1,449 


8 


17 


2,800-2,899 


2 




1,450-1,499 




4 


3,000-3,099 


4 




1,500-1,549 


22 


12 


3,100-3,199 






1,550-1,599 




2 


3,200-3,299 


1 




1,600-1,649 


3 

2 


8 
1 








1,650-1,699 








1,700-1,749 


9 


1 


Total 


123 


293 


1,750-1,799 


2 


4 








1,800-1,849 


12 


3 


Median 


$1,746.20 


$1,221.70 


1,850-1,899 


2 




First quartile 


1,509.80 


1,116.73 


1,900-1,949 


4 


1 


Third quartile 


2,037.54 


1,334.54 


1,950-1,999 


1 











108 



Table 52. — Salaries of 2,387 Rural High School Principals and Teachers 

in 1919-20 



Amount 


Number 

of 
principals 


Number 

of 
teachers 


Amount 


Number 

of 
principals 


Number 

of 
teachers 


received 


received 


$600- $649 




12 


$1,950-1,999 


2 




650- 699 




11 


2,000-2,049 


26 


2 


700- 749 




51 


2,050-2,099 


2 




750- 799 




79 


2,100-2,149 


12 


2 


800- 849 


3 


220 


2,150-2,199 


2 




850- 899 


2 


247 


2,200-2,249 


18 




900- 949 


6 


385 


2,250-2,299 


5 




950- 999 


7 


175 


2,300-2,349 


7 


1 


1,000-1,049 


20 


232 


2,350-2,399 




1 


1,050-1,099 


9 


72 


2,400-2,449 


2 






1,100-1,149 


38 


83 


2,450-2,499 


1 






1,150-1,199 


15 


21 


2,500-2,549 


7 






1,200-1,249 


43 


45 


2,550-2,599 


2 






1,250-1,299 


17 


19 


2,600-2,649 


8 






1,300-1,349 


45 


33 


2,650-2,699 








1,350-1,399 


13 


7 


2,700-2,749 








1,400-1,449 


39 


15 


2,750-2,799 


1 






1,450-1,499 


4 


6 


2,800-2,899 


2 






1,500-1,549 


51 


21 


2,900-2,999 


3 






1,550-1,599 


5 


6 


3,000 andover 


11 






1,600-1,649 


58 

7 


8 
4 








1,650-1,699 








1,700-1,749 


39 


10 


Total 


603 


1,784 


1,750-1,799 


10 


2 








1,800-1,849 


37 


10 


Median 


$1,538.71 


$934.32 


1,850-1,899 


4 


1 


First quartile 


1,271.80 


863.77 


1,900-1,949 


20 


2 


Third quartile 


1,827.72 


1,033.05 



ceived in 1920-21 salary increases over 1919-20 to an amount ap- 
proximately equal to the $300 per teacher from State funds under the 
provisions of the Lockwood-Donahue act. In the case of principals 
the increase seems to have been to the extent of approximately two- 
thirds of the $300 available from the special State fund. 

Economic Status 
The data indicate that more than one-half of the rural high school 
teaching staff have no source of income beyond their salaries re- 
ceived as principals and teachers. In round numbers, 53 percent of 
the principals reported that they received no money from any other 
source. Practically 69 percent of the teachers reported no money 

109 



from any other source. Combining the data for principals and 
teachers shows that over 88 percent of the staff received $100 or less 
from sources other than salary in 1920-21. 

Table 53. — The Amount of Money Derived from Other Sources During 
the Year (Interest Received, Income from Other Investments, etc.) 



Amount received 


Princi- 
pals 


Teach- 


Total 


Percent 
of 


Percent 
of 


Percent 
of 




ers 




princi- 
pals 


teachers 


total 


Nothing 


65 


201 


266 


52.8 


68.6 


63.9 


$1- $25 


8 


33 


41 


6.5 


11.3 


9.8 


26- 50 


18 


10 


28 


14.6 


3.4 


6.7 


51- 75 


2 


7 


9 


1.6 


2.4 


2.2 


76- 100 


4 


21 


25 


3.2 


7.1 


6.0 


101- 150 


4 


1 


5 


3.2 


0.3 


1.2 


151- 200 


5 


6 


11 


4.1 


2.0 


2.6 


201- 300 


6 • 


4 


10 


4.8 


1.4 


2.4 


301- 400 




1 


1 




0.3 


0.2 


401- 500 


3 


1 


4 


2.4 


0.3 


0.9 


501- 700 


4 


5 


9 


3.2 


1.7 


2.1 


701-1,000 




1 


1 




0.3 


0.2 


1,001 or over 




2 


2 




0.7 


0.5 


Not reported . . . 


4 




4 


3.2 




1.0 



Table 54. — Approximate Amount of Money Earned Outside Regular 
Teaching Salary During the Year 



Amount earned 


Princi- 
pals 


Teach- 
ers 


Total 


Percent 

of 
princi- 
pals 


Percent 

of 
teachers 


Percent 

of 

total 


Nothing 


63 


205 


268 


51.2 


69.9 


64.4 


$l-$25 


6 


9 


15 


4.9 


3.1 


3.6 


26- 50 


2 


29 


31 


1.6 


9.9 


7.4 


51- 75 


4 


1 


5 


3.2 


0.3 


1.2 


76-100 


11 


18 


29 


cS.O 


6.1 


7.0 


101-125 


8 


1 


9 


6.5 


0.3 


2.2 


126-150 




4 


4 




1.4 


1.0 


151-175 


1 




1 


0.8 




0.2 


176-200 


9 


7 


15 


7.3 


2.4 


3.6 


201-250 




2 


2 




0.7 


0.5 


251-300 


10 


6 


16 


8.1 


2.0 


3.8 


301-400 


3 


4 


7 


2.4 


1.4 


1.7 


401-500 


1 


3 


4 


0.8 


1.0 


1.0 


Over 500 


4 


2 


6 


3.2 


0.7 


1.4 


Not reported 


1 


3 


4 


0.8 


1.0 


1.0 



The larger proportion of the staff reported no money earned 
from other sources in addition to their salaries as principals and 
teachers. Over 51 percent of the principals and 70 percent of the 
teachers reported no additional earnings. For both principals and 
teachers approximately 84 percent earned $100 or less outside the 
regular teaching salary. (Table 54.) 

One factor determining the attractiveness and appeal of a calling 
as a permanent life-work is its possibility of an annual saving. In 
New York the system of teacher 's pensions in part answers this re- 
quirement. If a calling is to attract the best type of individual, 
however, it would seem that a system of pensions should be regarded 
as supplementary and that in addition the financial returns should 
be sufficient to make possible the gradual accumulation of a personal 
reserve. The figures as to savings of rural high school principals 
and teachers indicate that at present such opportunities are in- 
sufficient to attract and hold the type of person most needed in 
rural high school work. 

Almost 40 percent of the principals reported no savings beyond 



Table 55. — Amount Saved During the Year in Addition to Life Insurance 

and Pension 











Percent 


Percent 


Percent 


Amount saved 


Princi- 
pals 


Teach- 


Total 


of 


of 


of 




ers 




princi- 


teachers 


total 










pals 






Nothing 


49 


130 


179 


39.8 


44.4 


43.0 


$1- $50 


2 


6 


8 


1.6 


2.0 


1.9 


51- 100 


5 


27 


32 


4.1 


9.2 


7.7 


101- 150 


11 


4 


15 


8.9 


1.4 


3.6 


151- 200 


5 


45 


50 


4.1 


15.3 


12.0 


201- 250 




9 


9 




3.1 


2.2 


251- 300 


'5 


7 


12 


4.1 


2.4 


2.y 


301- 350 


1 


4 


5 


0.8 


1.4 


1.2 


351- 400 


11 


44 


55 


8.9 


15.0 


13.2 


401- 500 


14 


9 


23 


11.4 


3.1 


5.5 


501- 600 


2 


1 


3 


1.6 


0.3 


0.7 


601- 700 


6 


3 


9 


4.8 


1.0 


2.2 


701- 800 


4 


2 


6 


3.2 


0.7 


1.4 


801- 900 


1 




1 


0.8 




0.2 


901-1,000 


3 


1 


4 


2.4 


0.3 


1.0 


Over 1,000 


3 




3 


2.4 




0.7 


Not reported 


1 


1 


2 


0.8 


0.3 


0.5 



pension and life insurance. Of the teachers, 44 percent reported 
no other savings. For the teaching staff as a whole 43 percent re- 
ported no other savings. Over 52 percent reported savings for the 
year of $100 or less and 25 percent saved $350 or more. 

Exclusive of pensions, 30 percent of the principals and 69 percent 
of the teachers, or practically 58 percent for both, reported no life 
insurance. Less than 13 percent of the teaching staff paid insur- 
ance premiums during the year in excess of $100. 



Table 56. — Amount Paid ] 


for Life Insurance Exclusive of Pension 


Amount paid 


Princi- 
pals 


Teach- 
ers 


Total 


Percent 

of 
princi- 
pals 


Percent 

of 
teachers 


Percent 

of 

total 


Nothing 


37 


203 


240 


30.1 


69.3 


57.7 


S1-S25 


9 


9 


18 


7.3 


3.1 


4.3 


26- 50 


12 


32 


44 


9.7 


10.9 


10.6 


51- 75 


17 


12 


29 


13.8 


4.1 


7.0 


76-100 


4 


3 


7 


3.2 


1.0 


1.7 


101-125 


12 


2 


14 


9.7 


0.7 


3.4 


126-150 


16 




16 


13.0 




3.8 


151-175 




10 


10 




3.4 


2.4 


176-200 


1 


1 


2 


0.8 


0.3 


0.5 


201-250 


2 




2 


1.6 




0.5 


251-300 


4 


1 


5 


3.2 


0.3 


1.2 


Over 300 


2 




2 


1.6 




0.5 


Not reported 


7 


20 


27 


5.7 


6.8 


6.5 



Persons Entirely or Partially Dependent 
In reply to the item as to responsibility for the entire support of 
dependents, approximately 85 percent of the principals reported. 
Of those reporting, 64 percent had one adult entirely dependent 
upon them for support and five percent had two. Thirty-one per- 
cent had no one entirely dependent upon them for support. Ninety- 
three percent of the teachers answered this item. Of this number 
92 percent had no adults entirely dependent upon them while eight 
percent had one adult. Forty-one percent of the principals report- 
ing had entire support of one or more children, while three percent 
of the teachers reporting had children entirely dependent upon them 
for support. 



Table 57. — Persons Dependent upon Principals and Teachers for 

Support 





(a 


Persons Entirely Dependent 












Adults 


Children 


Number 
























dependent 


Not 
























re- 


None 


1 


2 


None 


1 


2 


3 


4 


5 


6 




ported 






















Principals 


18 


33 


67 


5 


62 


23 


6 


10 


1 


2 


1 


Teachers 


19 


253 


20 


1 


266 


6 


1 




1 






Total 


37 


286 


87 


6 


328 


29 


7 


10 


2 


2 


1 


Percent princi- 
























pals 1 


14.6 


31.4 


63.8 


4.8 


59.0 


21.9 


5.7 


9.5 


0.9 


1.9 


0.9 


Percent teachers 


6.5 


92.3 


7.3 


0.4 


97.1 


2.2 


0.4 




0.4 






Percent total. . . 


8.9 


75.5 


22.9 


1.6 


87.5 


7.7 


1.9 


2.7 


0.5 


0.5 


0.3 



(b) Persons Partially Dependent 





Adults 


Children 


Number dependent 


Not 
re- 
ported 


None 


1 


2 


3 


None 


1 


2 


3 


Principals 

Teachers 


16 
19 


90 
231 


14 
31 


3 
10 


2 


101 
258 


4 
13 


1 

3 


1 


Total 


35 

13.0 
6.5 

8.4 


321 

84.1 
84.3 
84.2 


45 

13.1 
11.3 
11.9 


13 

2.8 
3.6 
3.4 


2 

0.8 
0.5 


359 

94.4 
94.2 
94.2 


17 

3.7 
4.7 
4.4 


4 

0.9 
1.2 
1.1 


1 


Percent of principals 1 . 

Percent of teachers 

Percent of total 


0.9 
0.3 



1 Except in the case of the percent not reporting, where the percentage is 
computed on the basis of the full number, the percentages are computed on the 
basis of the actual number reporting on the item in question. 



"3 



Eighty-seven percent of the principals and 93 percent of the 
teachers reported on the item as to persons partially dependent 
upon them for support. Of the principals reporting, 84 percent had 
no adults partially dependent upon them and 94 percent no children 
partially dependent; while lo percent were partially responsible for 
the support of one or two adults and six percent for one to three 
children. Of the teachers reporting, 84 percent had no adults par- 
tially dependent upon them for support and 94 percent no children. 
Sixteen percent had the responsibility for the partial support of one 
to three adults and six percent for the partial support of one to two 
children. (See Table 57.) 

Money Earning Work Done Other than Teaching 
On this item the proportion of principals and teachers reporting 
was comparatively small, approximately 63 percent of the group 
studied replying. Of the principals reporting, over 31 percent had 
never done money earning work other than teaching, and the same 
was true of over 47 percent of the teachers who replied to the item. 
An additional 23 percent of the principals and M percent of the 
teachers had done other money earning work only during the sum- 
mer. Approximately 10 percent of the principals reporting had fol- 
lowed some other type of work for one year or less and 35 percent 
had engaged in other types of work for a period of one to ten years- 
Of the teachers reporting, approximately five percent had followed 
some other type of work for one year or less, and over 15 percent 
had pursued another calling for a period of from one to 20 years. 
While the data on the point in question are insufficient for any 
definite conclusions, they would seem to indicate that teaching has 
been predominantly the work of those giving instruction in the 
rural high schools of New York. It is to be noted, however, that 
over one-fifth of those reporting have followed other vocations for 
periods of time varying from one-half year to twenty years. It is 
significant also that only for principals is the number having fol- 
lowed other lines of work for a period of one year or more more than 
a third of those reporting. Types of work most frequently reported 
by principals as having been followed were farming, clerical work, 
business, factory work, insurance, tutoring and the work of sales- 

114 



man; by teachers: tutoring, office work, clerking, farming, factory 
work, and music. 



Table 58. 


—Money Earning Work Engaged i>, 


Other Than Teaching 


Length of 
time 


None 


Only 

in 
sum- 
mer 


Less 
than 
one 
year 


One 
year 


Two 
years 


Three 
years 


Four 
years 


Five 
years 


6-10 

years 


11-20 

years 


Num- 
ber 
re- 
port- 
ing 


Not 
re- 
port- 
ing 


Principals. . . . 
Teachers 


24 
88 


18 
60 


8 
10 


13 
17 


3 

5 


2 


2 

2 


3 
1 


4 
1 


2 


77 
186 


46 

107 


Total 

1 Percent of 
principals 

Percent of 
teachers . 


112 

31.2 

47.3 


78 

23.4 
32.3 


18 

10.4 

5.4 


30 

16.9 
9.1 


8 

3.9 

2.7 


2 
2.6 


4 

2.6 
1.1 


4 

3.7 
0.5 


5 

5.2 
0.5 


2 
1.1 


263 

62.6 
63.5 


153 

37.4 
36.5 


Percent of 
total .... 


42.2 


29.6 


6.8 


11.4 


3.0 


0.8 


1.5 


1.5 


1.9 


0.8 


63.2 


36.8 



Professional Growth 

It is quite generally recognized that an important factor in the 
professional growth of the members of a profession is their constant 
interest in and contact with the current problems and trends of the 
profession. The physician who is advancing in his calling must keep 
in touch with the progress made in medicine and the treatment of 
disease. The progressive farmer keeps informed as to the develop- 
ments in the science of agriculture. Likewise the teacher, following 
one of the most difficult of callings, if he is to continue to develop in 
teaching skill and understanding, must at all times be acquainted 
with the best that is being done in education, at least in the phases 
pertaining* to his particular type of work. 

While it is practically impossible to estimate accurately the pro- 
fessional interest and growth of a group except by the observation 
and study of the individuals composing it, there are certain things 
which may be regarded as an index. One index of professional in- 
terest and growth on the part of the teacher is professional study 
while in service. Among other things are membership in profes- 

1 The percentages as to types of money earning work engaged in other than 
teaching are computed on the basis of number reporting. 

"5 



sional organizations for teachers, professional reading, and the study 
of the work of other teachers. 

As to the manner of spending the summer vacation, 406 of the 416 
principals and teachers gave definite replies. Fifty-four or 13 per- 
cent reported attendance at summer school; 131 or 31.5 percent 
worked during the summer; 150 or 36 percent gave "at home" or 
"rest" as the manner of spending the summer vacation, and 16 or 
3.8 percent spent the time in study. Other ways mentioned by a 
few for each were: tutoring, farming, keeping house, teaching 
music, clerical work, travel, and athletics. 

Table 59. — Manner of Spending the Summer Vacation 



Manner of spending 
vacation 


Principals 


Teachers 


Total 


Percent of 
total 


Summer school 

Stu.lv 

Work 

At home 


22 
5 

55 
10 
10 
2 
1 
8 
1 
1 
2 

4 
2 


32 

11 

76 

58 

72 

4 

6 

2 

10 

5 

2 

2 

5 

8 


54 

16 

131 

68 

82 

6 

7 

10 
11 
6 
4 
2 
9 
10 


13.0 

3.8 

31.5 

16.3 


Rest 

Tutoring 


19.7 
1.4 


Teach music 

Farm 

Keep house 

Clerical work 

Travel 

Athletics 

Miscellaneous 

Not reported 


1.7 
2.4 
2.6 
1.4 
1.0 
0.5 
2.2 
2.4 



With regard to membership in educational organizations, 29 per- 
cent of the 123 principals reported no membership in an educational 
organization. Thirty-four percent were members of the New York 
State Teachers Association; 20 percent belonged to other New- 
York State educational associations. Approximately 28 percent 
were members of regional or county organizations. Six and one- 
half percent belonged to the National Education Association and 
eight percent were members of other national educational organiza- 
tions. 

Of the teachers, 48 percent reported no membership in an educa- 
tional organization. Thirty-seven percent were members of the 

n6 



New York State Teachers Association; 2.7 percent belonged to 
other educational organizations of the State; and 13 percent be- 
longed to regional or county associations. Five percent of the teach- 
ers were members of the Modern Language Association, two per- 
cent of the National Education Association, and 7.4 percent re- 
ported membership in other national teachers' organizations. The 
average membership for each principal was approximately one or- 
ganization: the average membership in educational organizations 
for each teacher was approximately two-thirds. 

Table 60. — Membership in Teachers' Organizations 



Kind of organization 


Princi- 
pals 


Per- 
cent 


Teach- 
ers 


Per- 
cent 


Total 


Per- 
cent 


None 


36 


29.3 


141 


48.1 


177 


42.5 


N. Y. State Teachers Asso- 














ciation 


42 


34.1 


108 


36.9 


150 


36.1 


Section or County Associa- 














tion 


34 


27.6 


39 


13.3 


73 


17.5 


Nat'l Education Association 


8 


6.5 


6 


2.0 


14 


3.4 


Other Nat'l Teachers Asso- 














ciations 


10 


8.1 


21 


7.2 


31 


7.4 



In answer to the query as to professional reading done during the 
year, slightly over 40 percent of the rural high school principals re- 
ported no reading in professional magazines and journals. The five 
publications most often mentioned by the principals who had done 
professional reading of this sort were, in order of frequency given, 
The School Board Journal, New York Teachers Association Journal, 
The State Department School Bulletin, American Education, and 
the Journal of the National Education Association. Thirty-one per- 
cent of the principals reported no reading of professional books dur- 
ing the year. The five books most frequently mentioned by those 
who had read professional books were, in the order of frequency 
mentioned, Methods of Teaching in High Schools, Parker; Com- 
mon Sense in School Supervision, Wagner; The Discipline of the 
School, Morehouse; The Class-room Teacher, Strayer and Engel- 
hardt ; and the Administration of Village and Consolidated Schools, 
Finney and Schafer. 

117 



Forty-three percent of the teachers reported no reading of pro- 
fessional magazines and journals during the year, and an additional 
six percent had read only the New York State Teachers Association 
Journal. The five most frequently mentioned educational maga- 
zines and journals read by teachers were in the order of frequency 
mentioned: New York State Teachers Association Journal, The 
English Journal, The Modern Language Journal, The Historical 
Outlook, and the Classical Journal. Forty-nine percent of the teach- 
ers reported no reading of professional books during the year. Those 
who had done reading in professional books gave the following most 
frequently, in the order mentioned: The Teaching of English, 
Chubb; The Teaching of English in Secondary Schools, Thomas; 
School Discipline, Bagley; All the Children of all the People, 
Smith; and The Teaching of History, Johnson. 

Of the 405 principals answering the questionnaire on administra- 
tion and organization of the rural high school, 348 replied to the 
query as to the existence of a teachers' reading circle in their school. 
According to these replies there were during the school year of 
1920-1921 twenty-three teachers' reading circles in the 348 schools, 
or one for each 15 schools. 



Table 61.- 



-Teachers' Reading Circles as Reported by 348 Rural High 
School Principals 



Type of school 


1^9 

pupils 


50-99 
pupils 


100-149 

pupils 


150 and 
over 


Total 


Number of schools with teach- 
ers' reading circle 

Number of schools having no 
teachers' reading circle 


7 
170 


7 
101 


4 
43 


5 
11 


23 
325 



The instructor in the city high school usually has the opportunity 
of coming in touch each day with other teachers giving instruction 
in the same subject. Under such circumstances discussions of or- 
ganization of subject matter, method, and aims become almost in- 
evitable. There is a sharing of problems and ways of solving them. 
In many cities also there is provision for the observation of teaching 
as done by the stronger teachers in the same high school or in other 

iiS 



schools. In the rural high school there is usually lacking the daily 
contact of a teacher with others doing the same type of work. The 
observation of teaching as done by other teachers is as a general 
thing rare or entirely lacking. Thus the rural high school teacher 
tends to lose the help and inspiration in his work that might come 
from such contacts. 

The data supplied by 338 principals indicate that opportunity for 
one of these means of growth, the observation of teaching in other 
schools, is given teachers in a considerable number of schools. While 
53 percent reported that their teachers had not observed teaching in 
other schools during the year, over 28 percent reported that their 
teachers had observed teaching in other schools once, and 19 per- 
cent reported two or more observations during the year. These 
replies indicate that many rural high school teachers have some op- 
portunity to observe teaching as done by instructors in other 
schools. 

Summary of Salient Points 

The facts found with regard to the teaching staff of the rural high 
school show that a large proportion of the instructors are immature 
and inexperienced. One-fourth of the teachers (excluding the prin- 
cipals) under whose direction the pupil receives his training are 24 
years old or younger, and over one-half his instructors, including his 
principal, are under 28 years of age. While there are undoubtedly 
many things to be said in favor of the young high school teacher 
filled with enthusiasm for his work, the lack of contact with mature 
instructors possessed of a background of experience is also un- 
doubtedly a handicap in the training of the pupil in the rural high 
school. 

Excluding his principal, one out of every four teachers of the rural 
high school pupil is practically without experience, having had one 
year or less, and one out of every five, including his principal. 
Practically one-half of his teachers are new to his school each year, 
and in over three schools out of every ten the pupil is under the 
guidance and counsel of a principal new r to the position and to the 
community. He has practically one chance in seven of graduating 
under the same principal with whom he begins his school work. 

119 



Of the high school teaching staff, three in ten are men. This pro- 
portion of men to women teachers is not much below the ratio com- 
monly found in high schools throughout the country. Considering, 
however, the fact that the male teacher in the small school is usually 
the principal, the actual teaching ratio is lower than that indicated 
by the proportion of men to women. In reality the pupil in the 
rural high school receives instruction from a man in less than one 
out of every four recitations. Without entering at all into the rela- 
tive merits of the work done by men and women as high school in- 
structors, the fact remains that the high school boy particularly 
would probably profit by more frequent contacts with men during 
his high school course. Especially in the promotion and stimulation 
of extra-class activities of the type interesting to boys more men 
are needed as teachers in the rural high schools. This would seem 
to be one of the problems worthy of serious attention. 

Practically nine out of every ten instructors are of American 
stock. More than eight out of every ten are from the State of New 
York. Approximately three out of four are either from the open 
country or from villages. Between four and five out of every ten 
are from families interested in farming as an occupation. These 
facts indicate that a fair proportion of the teaching staff should, 
both by virtue of early experience and present occupational inter- 
ests, have a sympathetic attitude toward and some understanding of 
rural life and rural problems. The high percentages coming from 
New York State should give a rural high school staff especially well 
informed as to problems within the State. There is a question, how- 
ever, as to whether there might not be advantages in breadth of 
view and differences in viewpoint to be gained from a larger number 
of principals and teachers recruited from other states. 

Approximately three in five of the rural high school teaching staff 
have had regular academic and professional training equal to grad- 
uation from a standard college. Four instructors in one hundred 
have done graduate work. Nineteen in one hundred have had an 
amount of regular training represented by graduation from a normal 
school; and nine in a hundred have done from one to four years of 
college work. Ten in a hundred have had less regular training than 
is required for graduation from a standard normal school and eight 



percent have had only a high school course or high school plus one 
year in a high school training class. Conservatively stated, the facts 
show that more than 35 in each 100, or more than one out of three 
of the rural high school corps of instruction, have less training than 
the minimum standards generally recognized as desirable for teach- 
ing in standard high schools. This conclusion is based upon stan- 
dards already existing. The North Central Association of Colleges 
and Secondary Schools, including in its territory eighteen States in 
the Middle West and West, requires that the instructors of aca- 
demic subjects in high schools accredited by the Association shall 
have as a minimum preparation a four-year course in a standard 
college of which at least eleven semester hours must have been de- 
voted to professional training. California has set as its standard 
for high school instructors in academic subjects graduation from 
college plus one year of advanced work. New York City requires 
graduation from a standard college or university (or the equivalent 
in the case of a teacher of modern foreign languages) . In addition it 
requires either a year's experience in teaching in secondary schools 
or in college, or 300 hours of graduate work, 60 hours of which shall 
be devoted to methods in the subject to be taught, or combinations 
of graduate study and experience equivalent to the 300 hours of 
academic study. 

The study of salaries in the rural high schools shows that there 
was a considerable increase in 1920-1921 over 1919-20. The in- 
crease is clearly due to the special funds coming from the State under 
the Lockwood-Donahue Act. Of both principals, and teachers, 
however, at least one-fourth received in 1920-1921 less than should 
be paid for high school instruction if the rural high school is to build 
up a well-trained permanent teaching force. A median salary of 
$1,750 for principalship positions with one-fourth under $1,500 is 
too low to attract and hold men of desirable training and ability to 
work in the rural high school. With a median salary for teachers of 
less than $1,225, and with one-fourth of the salaries under $1,125 
and less than one-fourth over $1,350, the rural high school is not 
in a position to demand teachers with the desired amount of training 
or to hold such teachers when secured. Under existing salary con- 
ditions the well-trained teacher of ability will look toward the city 



high school positions after a year or two of teaching experience 
gained in the rural high school. 

It should be recognized that the question of salary is not the only 
factor drawing teachers toward the larger high schools. The social 
and professional advantages of the larger centers are undoubtedly 
important factors. The opportunities for greater specialization and 
the smaller number of daily teaching periods as contrasted with the 
wide range of subjects and larger number of teaching periods re- 
quired in the rural high school are also factors operating to attract 
to the larger schools those planning to make teaching a profession. 
To offset these attractive features of the high school positions in 
urban centers, among other things, it would seem that the rural 
high school must offer greater salary inducements definitely reward- 
ing teaching experience and professional improvement. 

One of the most important factors in maintaining the efficiency 
of a teaching force is generally recognized to be its active interest in 
professional problems. All findings indicate that as a group the 
rural high school teachers give a small amount of time to those 
things tending toward professional growth. Many individual prin- 
cipals and teachers give much attention to professional reading and 
other means of professional improvement. As a group, however, 
the percentage attending summer schools is exceedingly low, being 
only 13 percent in the case of 416 principals and teachers studied. 
The data indicate also that a comparatively large percentage of the 
principals and teachers are not members of any teachers' associa- 
tions. In the case of principals, 29 percent reported no membership 
in an educational organization and 48 percent of the teachers re- 
ported no membership. Four out of every ten principals and teach- 
ers reported no reading for the year in professional magazines and 
journals. Three out of ten in the case of the principals and five out 
of ten in the case of the teachers reported no professional books 
read during the year. In 23 out of 348 high schools for which data 
are available there were teachers' reading circles for the study of 
educational questions. In 47 percent of the 338 rural high schools 
where the principal reported on the item the teachers observed 
teaching in other high schools once or more than once during the 
year. All findings show that more opportunities for professional 



improvement and more stimulation toward the professional growth 
of rural high school principals and teachers are needed in the State. 

Recommendations for the Improvement of the Rural High 
School Teacher 

All steps looking toward the improvement of the rural high school 
teaching staff should have as the aims: (1) The creation of a pro- 
fessional body of rural high school principals and teachers with 
academic and professional training equal to graduation from a 
standard college and with an amount of time devoted to professional 
training equal to at least twelve college semester hours; and (2) the 
stimulation of professional interest and growth during service. 

/ . I 

It is therefore recommended:. 

1. That the existing system of certification as it applies to rural 
high school principals and teachers be simplified and modified with 
the aim of raising the standards for teaching in the rural high 
schools of New York, and of furnishing increased incentive for pro- 
fessional growth while in service. 1 

(a/ That a College Graduate Professional Life Certificate be the 
only life certificate for teaching in the rural high schools of the 
State: (1) That this certificate state specifically, in the case of teach- 
ers of academic subjects, the major and minor groups of subjects, 
and in the case of a teacher of vocational subjects, the major field 
and one minor (which may be an academic group) in which the 
holder is authorized to give high school instruction; and (2) that 
this certificate be granted only after a minimum of five years of 
successful teaching in high school and one year of graduate study 
of which a minimum of one-half shall have been devoted to pro- 
fessional subjects. The major and minor groups shall be deter- 
mined in terms of the amount of time required for major and minor 
groups of subjects respectively for graduation from a standard col- 
lege as defined by the University of the State of New York. / 

1 It should be noted that the Assistant Commissioner for Secondary Educa- 
tion in his report of 1914 called attention to the need of higher standards for 
teaching in the high schools of the State and recommended a plan similar in some 
respects to the one presented in this report. Report of the Commissioner of 
Education, 1914, pp. 194-195. 

123 



(b) That a College Graduate Professional Limited Certificate good 
for five years and renewable for an additional term of five years and 
requiring a minimum of twelve semester hours of professional train- 
ing as a part of the work toward the college degree be, after 1927, 
the lowest certificate granted for teaching in the rural high schools 
of the State. It is recommended that this certificate state specific- 
ally, as in the College Graduate Professional Life Certificate, the 
major and minor groups of subjects in which the holder is author- 
ized to give high school instruction, and that the interpretation of 
major and minor groups be identical with that in the College Grad- 
uate Professional Life Certificate. 

(c) That a College Graduate Temporary Certificate good for two 
years and not renewable be granted on a degree from a standard 
college and authorizing the holder to give high school instruction in 
groups of subjects specifically stated, the interpretation of major 
and minor subject groups to be identical with that in the higher 
certificates. It is recommended that this certificate be discon- 
tinued after 1927. 

(d) It is recommended that for principalship or supervisory work 
in the rural high schools of the State, either certificate (a) or (b) be 
required, with the special requirements: (1) that one-half of the 
professional study regularly required for the certificate be in the 
fields of school administration, organization, and supervision; or 
(2) that a minimum of six semester hours shall have been devoted 
to the study of these subjects in addition to the regular require- 
ments in professional subjects, as provided for in certificates (a) 
and (b). 

II 

The standards proposed in the plan of certification for rural high 
school teachers are conservative in comparison with those the 
North Central Association of Secondary Schools and Colleges, in- 
cluding in its territory eighteen States, requires for teaching in high 
schools accredited by the association. They are conservative also 
when compared with the requirements for teaching in high schools 
in California, or in- New York City, and other cities. It is realized, 
however, that the proposed standards are not justified under pres- 

124 



ent conditions as to salaries in the rural high schools. Therefore it 
is recommended that: 

1. A graduated salary schedule be formulated for the rural high 
schools of the State that shall be based upon: 

(a) Academic and professional training. 

(b) Professional experience and success. 

(c) Professional improvement in service. 

This salary schedule should be designed to reward teaching on the 
basis of the three items above rather than upon the size of the high 
school in which the teaching is done or upon the wealth of the par- 
ticular community in which the school is situated. 

Ill 

One of the great needs of the New York rural high school today 
as shown by all phases of the study of the rural high schools is a 
body of principals and teachers of thorough professional training 
and informed and alive to the recent developments in all aspects of 
secondary education. To insure the existence of such a professional 
body the recommendations in I and II are important factors. 
There is also imperative the development of specific means and 
agencies, first, to prepare persons to become teachers in the rural 
high schools of the State; and secondly, for placing before principals 
and teachers in service the latest ideas and means for the improve- 
ment of their work. To meet the needs of the first group, those pre- 
paring to teach, the State should make more adequate provision for 
the training of rural high school principals and teachers. To meet 
the needs of the second group, those in service, it would seem advis- 
able to make more specific provision for the consideration of rural 
high school problems in administration, supervision, and instruc- 
tion. To accomplish this end partially, more definite attention 
should be given to the consideration of rural high school problems 
in such existing agencies as the State Teachers Association and the 
various local and regional teachers' organizations. These should be 
supplemented by agencies to be devised and set up specifically for 
the training of rural high school principals and teachers in service, 
as: summer school courses of college grade planned definitely to 
consider the problems of the small high school in the selection and 

125 



organization of subject matter and the methods of teaching the 
various high school subjects; in the administration, organization, 
and supervision of the small high school; and in the principles 
underlying secondary education. Conferences for high school prin- 
cipals and teachers dealing with specific problems should become a 
feature in each of the intermediate school units of the State. In 
addition, extension courses should be encouraged wherever possible. 



126 



CHAPTER VI 
THE OBSERVATION OF CLASS-ROOM INSTRUCTION 

ONE of the important factors in determining the efficiency of 
any school or type of schools is undoubtedly the work, of 
the class-room teacher. To give an adequate picture of 
New York rural high schools it was deemed necessary to make a 
careful study of a comparatively large number of recitations in a 
large number of high schools and in a fairly wide range of subjects. 
The difficulties of estimating definitely the efficiency of any recita- 
tion were, of course, recognized. Scientifically established criteria of 
high school teaching are unfortunately lacking. It seemed advisable 
to devise a plan which should first give attention to those phases of 
high school class-room work that are generally conceded to be in- 
dices of its efficiency; and secondly, be reducible in part at least to 
statistical treatment. It was deemed important also that the plan 
used should be interpreted similarly by all persons working on this 
problem of the survey in order to yield comparable results. 

Method Used 
With the above requirements in the foreground, a provisional 
plan for the observation of high school instruction was formulated. 
This provisional plan was then submitted to various members of the 
survey staff and to other persons of wide experience in education 
and particularly in high school supervision. After revision in ac- 
cordance with criticisms offered the plan was tested in the actual 
observation of a number of recitations in several high schools and 
the existing weaknesses eliminated in so far as possible. The out- 
line as finally used in the survey was divided into five main sec- 
tions: (1) Class Routine; (2) Assignment and Study Guidance; 
(3) Conduct of the Recitation, with five special items for subjects of 
the form or drill type, as mathematics and languages, and for recita- 

127 



lions in other subjects where the work of the recitations was upon 
these phases; (4) General observations; and (5) Critical comments. 

NEW YORK STATE RURAL SCHOOL SURVEY 
Observation of High School Teaching 



School Date Observer 

Subject No. pupils Class or year 

Lesson Topic 

I. Class Routine: 

(1) Time spent in preliminaries? 

(2) Were the materials systematically arranged and handled? 

(3) Conditions favorable for work? Chief hindrances? 



II. Assignment and Study Guidanck: 

(1) Place of assignment: Beginning? Close? Divided? 

(2) Amount of time consumed? Taken by pupils in written form? 

(3) Aim: Definite (clear statement of objective to be attained?) 

Certain number of pages or topics in text? 

(4) How motivated? Were "Regents" mentioned? 

How? 

(5) Did pupils enter into the making of assignment by suggesting problems 

or topics of interest to them? 

(6) What was done in the way of suggestions for working out assignment 

(problems, guiding topics, supplementary readings, observations, experi- 
ments, methods of attack, community sources)? 

(7) Was any differentia tion in assignment made? On what basis? 

III. Conduct of Recitation: 

(1) Was aim clear and definite, either as stated by instructor or as evident 

from recitation? remote? immediate? 

(2) Type of lesson : development drill review study 

catechizing application appreciation other types 

(3) Procedure: question and answer topical discussion class 

reports telling lab. exercises note taking read- 
ing of text and discussion demonstration seat work 

blackboard work oral drill criticism of work previously 

done by the class other procedure 

128 



(4) Outstanding characteristics of questions: thought stimulating 

yes and no clear cut vague other characteristics. 

(5) Fraction of answers repeated by instructor? apparent purpose? 



(6) Fraction of class called upon? fraction of responses satisfactory to 

instructor? number of failures to respond when called upon? 



(7) Were pupils encouraged to contribute new material? to express 

divergent views? were supporting facts insisted upon? 

(8) What devices were used to give concreteness to the work (blackboard 

illustrations objects drawings specimens maps 

examples charts applications of principle to known 

situations, etc.?) 

(9) Were any connections made with other school subjects? 

With other things within pupils' experience? 

(10) Did instructor try to arrive at conclusions for which there was evident 

lack of facts in possession of pupils? 

What was done? 

(11) Did recitation hold consistently to its purpose? rambling? 

(12) What variety in procedure was used? 

For Form Subjects Only: 

(13) Were responses made by class in the main, accurate? inaccu- 

rate? given with confidence? doubt? 

(14) Were errors immediately checked up and pupils making them required 

to give correct responses? 

(15) To what extent were the corrections contributed by members of the 

class? 

(16) Were the pupils given practice in applying known facts and princi- 

ples to problems containing new elements? in miscellaneous 

order? 

(17) Drill: Fraction of recitation given to drill? snappy? 

listless? emphasize pivotal points? attention given to 

speed? accuracy? need of drill made evident to pupils? 

how? to what extent was time 

spent drilling individual pupils upon items apparently known to 
rest of class? 

IV. General Observations: 

(1) Was attitude of pupils — attentive? orderly? indifferent? 

disorderly? If indifferent or disorderly, what was apparent 

cause? 

(2) Were desirable habits of work emphasized: punctuality in assigned 

work? neatness? thoroughness? responsibility? 

9 129 



(3) Were pupils in process of recitation frequently interrupted by other 

pupils? by instructor? purpose? 

(4) Fraction of recitation consumed by instructor talking? 

to what end? ? 

(5) Fraction of recitation that instructor remained seated at desk? 

(6) Did instructor give evidences of adequate preparation for the recita- 

tion? pupils? 

(7) What use did instructor make of text during recitation? 

(8) Fraction of class kept busy during recitation? 

(9) Were "Regents" mentioned? How? 

(10) What points in recitation stood out in mind of observer as having been 

adequately developed during recitation? 

(11) In the opinion of observer what was the strongest feature of the recita- 

tion? 

Wrakest? 

V. Critical Comments: Criticize carefully organization and procedure, e.g., 
questioning, presentation, development of main points, manner of in- 
structor toward class, etc. 

The plan having been determined upon, a staff of seven persons, 
all of whom had had broad experience in directing and supervising 
high school instruction, was selected. This staff met and gave a day 
to a careful analytical study of the plan and to training in its use. 
Definite written instructions were given to each person as to the 
methods of observation and the recording of data so that as little 
variation as possible might result. Each recitation observed was 
seen in its entirety and every period of observation was followed by 
a free period during which the observer completed his report on the 
recitation visited before making the next observation. The sub- 
jects the teaching of which was observed were those most com- 
monly taught with the exception of two recitations in commercial 
arithmetic and commercial geography. 

Number of Schools Visited and Recitations Observed 

The observation staff studied class-room work in 61 different high 

schools located in every section of the State and including all types 

of rural high schools based upon number of pupils enrolled. One 

hundred and seventy-nine recitations were observed as taught by 



144 different instructors. The observations were distributed as to 
the time of the year as follows : 

April 18-27, 1921 8 observations 

May 9-13, 1921 100 

May 16-20, 1921 42 

October 10-28, 1921 29 

The subjects the teaching of which was observed, and number of 
recitations in each, were as follows: 

History, 24; English, 35; algebra, 22; plane geometry, 15; for- 
eign languages, 33; biology, 23; physics, 11; civics, 14; commercial 
arithmetic, 1; commercial geography, 1; total, 179. 

Statistical Resume of Results 
In detail, the observation of high school instruction in the rural 
high schools visited brought out the following facts, which it seems 
reasonable to assume represent fairly well teaching in all rural high 
schools of the State: 

I. Class routine : 

1 . How much time was spent in the steps preliminary to the work 
of the recitation? 

None, 102 recitations; 1 to 3 minutes, 66; 4 to 5 minutes, 9; 
6 to 10 minutes, 2 recitations. 

2. Were materials systematically arranged and handled? 
None used other than text-book, 99; yes, 68; no, 12. 

3. Were conditions favorable for work? 
No, 44 recitations; yes, 109; fair, 26. 

What were the chief hindrances in carrying on the work? 

Large assembly room, 2; class in study room, 38; dark room, 10; 
small crowded room, 9; shortage of books, 15; other hindrances 
reported were chairs without writing arms; insufficient blackboard 
space; and noisy room. 

II. Assignment and Study Guidance: 

1 . At what point in the recitation was the assignment made? 
Beginning, 53 recitations; close, 96; divided, 30. 

131 



2. How much time was devoted to the making of the assignment? 

Less than }/?. minute, 36 cases; x /2 to 1 minute, 50; 1 to 5 
minutes, 63; 5 minutes or over, 30. 

3. Was the aim of the assignment definite (clear statement of the 
objectives to be attained) or was it indefinite and vague? 

Definite, 55 cases; indefinite and vague, 102; difficult to 
classify, 22. 

3 (a). Was the assignment taken by the pupils in written form? 
No, 100 cases; yes, 50; merely checked in text, 29. 

3 (b). Was the assignment made in terms of pages in the text- 
book only? 

Yes, 132 cases; no, 47. 

4. Was any attempt made to motivate the assignment? 

No attempt, 94 recitations; some attempt made, 85 recita- 
tions. 

4 (a). What was the nature of the motivation? 

Mention of Regents examinations, 45 recitations; mention of 
school examinations, 5 ; emphasizing the need of study, 1 2 ; 
connections made with current questions, 8; interest in new 
phases of the work, 3; rivalry between members of the class, 
2; remain after school, 2; told to prepare the lesson, 2; assign- 
ment of problems, 5; interest in characters in literature, 1. 

5. Did pupils enter into the making of the assignment by sug- 
gesting problems or topics of interest to them? 

No, 167 assignments; yes, 12 assignments. 

6. What was done in the way of suggestions for working out the 
assignment? 

Nothing, 107 cases; problems, 10; calling attention to guiding 
topics and important items, 36; hints as to methods of attack, 
17; assignment of supplementary reading, 9. 

7. Was any differentiation made in the assignment, and if so, 
what? 

No, 174 cases; yes, 5. 

132 



7 (a). Nature of the differentiation: 

Individual pupils asked to choose a subject, 2 assignments; 
Assignments of topics to individual pupils, 2; Assignment 
to individuals of topics at close of chapter in text-book, 1. 

III. The Conduct of the Recitation: 

1. Was the aim of the recitation clear and definite, either as 
stated by the instructor or as evident from the recitation, or 
was it indefinite? 

Clear and definite, 99 recitations; indefinite, 80. 

1 (a). Was the aim remote or immediate? 

Remote, 72 recitations; immediate, 44; so indefinite as to make 
classification impossible, 63. 

2. What types of lesson were most prominent? l 

Development, 51 recitations; review, 85; catechizing, 82; 
drill, 44; application, 39; appreciation, 13; telling, 15; study, 
8; debate, 1; observation, 1. 

3. What was the procedure or method of attack used in the recita- 
tion? 

Question and answer, 137; blackboard work, 62; telling, 49; 
topical discussion, 27; seat work, 23; reading of text and dis- 
cussion, 22; demonstration and laboratory, 21; criticism of 
work previously prepared by the class, 16; oral drill, 19; trans- 
lation, 12; class reports, 10; taking notes and dictation, 8. 

4. What were the outstanding characteristics of the questions 
used? 

Thought stimulating, 96 ; memory testing, 81 ; many "yes and 
no" questions, 62; questions clear cut and direct, 64; vague 
and indefinite, 17; many questions suggesting their own an- 
swer, 6; stereotyped form of question, 4; questions answered 
by the instructor without giving the pupils an opportunity to 
answer, 5. 

1 In item 2 and the two following items the number of cases does not equal 
the total number of recitations observed, as more than one type was prominent in 
the course of the recitation period. 

133 



5. What fraction of the answers to questions were repeated by 
the instructor? 

None, 110 recitations; less than one-half, 19 recitations; one- 
half or more, 50 recitations. 

5 (a). What was the apparent purpose of the instructor in re- 
peating the answers given by the pupils? 

To emphasize the answer, 19; to amplify and develop answer, 
12; to let rest of class hear the answer, 9; to put answer in 
better form, 6; merely a matter of habit, 5; for criticism of 
answer given, 3; to introduce the next question, 3; miscella- 
neous, 12. 

6. What fraction of the class was called upon during the recita- 
tion? 

None, 1 recitation; one-fourth, 19; one-half, 41; three- 
fourths, 30; all, 88 recitations. 

6 (a). What fraction of the responses by pupils were satisfactory 
to the instructor? 

None, 1 recitation; one-half, 48; three-fourths, 99; all, 31. 

6 (b). How many failures on the part of the pupils to respond 
when called upon? 

None, 51 recitations; one, 27 recitations; 2, 33 recitations; 
3, 23 recitations; 4, 14 recitations; 5 or more, 31. 

7. Were pupils encouraged during the recitation to contribute 
new material? 

No, 138 recitations; yes, 41. 

7 (a). To express views other than those of the text-book? 
No, 147 recitations; yes, 32. 

7 (b). Were pupils required to give facts supporting their an- 
swers? 

No, 136 recitations; yes, 43. 

134 



8. What devices were used by the instructor to give concreteness 
to the work of the recitation? 

None, 81 recitations; objects, 9; blackboard illustrations, 36; 
examples, 13; drawings, 12; maps, 7; applications to pupils' 
experiences, 21; specimens, 2; charts, 2. 

9. Were any connections made during the recitation with other 
school subjects? 

No, 162 recitations; yes, 17 recitations. 

9 (a). Were any connections made with other things within 
pupils' experiences? 

No, 129 recitations; yes, 50. 

The types of connections made were: with home life, 6; with 
diet, 5; with village institutions, 4; with plants, fruits, and birds, 
4; miscellaneous, occurring once each, 39. 

10. Did the instructor attempt to arrive at conclusions during 
the recitation for which there was evident lack of facts in the 
possession of the pupils? 

No, 126 recitations; yes, 53. 

10 (a). What did the instructor do? 

Told the class, 26 cases; accepted indefinite answers, 9 cases; 
left the point undeveloped, 7 cases ; turned to the text, 6 cases ; 
given as future problem, 3 cases; chided the class, 2 cases. 

1 1 . Did the recitation hold consistently to its purpose or was it 
rambling? 

Consistent, 72 cases; very rambling, 27; rambling at times, 
80. 

12. What variety in procedure was used? x 

The following five points on the conduct of the recitation treat 
only the 88 recitations in form or drill subjects or recitations in 
other subjects on phases emphasizing drill: 
1 See items 2 and 3, III. 
135 



13. Were the responses made by members of the class in the main 
accurate or inaccurate? 

Accurate, 73 recitations; inaccurate, 15. 

13 (a). Were the responses given by the pupils with confidence or 
with doubt? 
With confidence, 50 recitations; with doubt, 38. 

14. Were errors immediately checked up and pupils making them 
required to give correct responses? 

Yes, 34 recitations; no, 54. 

15. To what extent were the corrections made contributed by 
members of the class? 

None or less than one-half, 34 recitations; one-half or more, 
54. 

16. Were the pupils given practice in applying known facts and 
principles to problems containing new elements? 

Yes, 62 recitations; no, 26. 

16 (a). In miscellaneous order? 
Yes, 56 recitations; no, 32. 

17. What fraction of the recitation was definitely given to drill? 
None, 19 recitations; one-fourth, 13; one-half, 28; all, 28. 

17 (a). Was the drill "snappy" or listless? 
"Snappy," 30 recitations; listless, 39. 

17 (b) Did the drill emphasize pivotal points in the work? 
Yes, 37 recitations; no, 32. 

17 (c). Was close attention given to accuracy? 
Yes, 32; no, 37. 

17 (d). Was attention given to speed? 
Yes, 8; no, 61. 

136 



17 (e). To what extent was time spent in drilling individual 
pupils upon items apparently known to the remainder of the 
class? 
Five to 10 minutes, 6 cases; over ten minutes, 3 cases. 

IV. General Observations on the recitation as a whole. 

1. Was the attitude of the pupils attentive? 
Yes, 132 recitations; no, 47. 

1 (a). Orderly? 

Yes, 134 recitations; no, 45. 

1 (b). Indifferent? 

Yes, 57 recitations; no, 122. 

1 (c). What was the apparent cause of the indifference or dis- 
orderliness? 

Lack of stimulation, 8 cases; formal, lifeless treatment of the 
subject, 12; no aim to the recitation, 9; general spirit of the 
school, 5; lack of preparation on the part of the pupils, 5; 
pupils uninterested in the subject, 4; instructor took up all the 
time, 4; nothing for pupils to do, 5; no organization of the 
work, 2 ; no respect for the instructor, 1 . 

2. Were desirable habits of work emphasized? punctuality in 
assigned work? 

Yes, 136 recitations; no, 43. 

Neatness? 

Yes, 145; no, 34. 

Thoroughness? 

Yes, 143 recitations; no, 36. 

Responsibility on part of pupils? 

Yes, 49; to some degree, 90; no, 40. 

3. Were pupils in the process of the recitation frequently inter- 
rupted? 

By other pupils? 
Yes, 21 recitations; no, 138. 
By the instructor? 
Yes, 51 recitations; no, 128. 

137 



3 (a). What was the apparent purpose on the part of the in- 
structor? 

To make corrections, 16 recitations; to ward off incorrect an- 
swers, 7; to complete answers, 8; to make fickle remarks, 9; 
to stimulate to study, 3; to insist upon accuracy, 2; to hurry 
up pupils, 2; to interpret answers, 2; to exhort pupils, 2. 

4. What fraction of the recitation was consumed by the instructor 
talking? 

Practically none, 11 recitations; one-fourth, 78; one-half, 51; 
three-fourths or more, 39. 

4 (a). To what end? 

Keep the recitation moving, 8 cases; elaborate upon the pupil's 
replies, 22; to make corrections, 19; to give directions, 24; to 
give explanations, 34; to supply information, 13; to draw out 
pupils, 4; to criticize pupils, 4; to give rambling dissertations, 
4; to interpret, 2. 

5. What fraction of the recitation did the instructor remain 
seated at his desk? 

None, 126 recitations; one-fourth, 3; one-half, 9; three- 
fourths, 5; the whole time, 36. 

6. Did the instructor give evidence of adequate preparation for 
the lesson? 

Yes, 149 recitations; no, 30. 

The pupils? 

Yes, 122 recitations; no, 57. 

7. What use did the instructor make of the text-book? 

The only guide for the recitation, 55 recitations; sole basis for 
the assignment, 132; the guide for questions, 34; read from 
the text-book, 13; referred to the text-book as the authority, 7. 

8. What fraction of the class were kept occupied during the re- 
citation? 

None, 6 recitations; one-fourth, 34; one-half, 20; three- 
fourths, 14; all, 103. 

138 



9. Were the Regents mentioned in the conduct of the recitation? 
Yes, 29 recitations; no, 150. 1 

9 (c). How? 

Regents Review books used as basis of preceding assignment, 
17 cases; basis of questions asked in recitation, 9; to stimu- 
late study, 2. 

10. What points in the recitation stood out in the mind of the 
observer as having been adequately developed during the 
recitation? 

One or more points, 124 recitations; none, 55 recitations. 

1 1 . In the opinion of the observer what was the strongest feature 
of the recitation? the weakest? 

The strongest feature as reported by the observers: 
Insistence upon accuracy and thoroughness, 40 recitations; 
stimulating the interest of the pupils, 19; the enthusiasm of 
the instructor for his work, 21; good class discussions, 16; 
skill in conducting drill, 14; skill in the development of the 
lesson, 10; good organization of the recitation, 14; use of 
the pupils' experiences, 8; skilful emphasis upon pivotal 
points in the lesson, 7; instructor's mastery of the subject, 
7; the patient, sympathetic attitude of the instructor, 6; 
a good assignment, 6. 

The weakest feature as reported by the observers : 

"Teacher did everything," 29 recitations; no phases of the 
lesson given any particular emphasis, 14; no organization of 
the lesson material, 14; entire lack of responsibility upon the 
part of the pupils, 22; dead, formal treatment of the subject- 
matter, 12; treatment of a great mass of details in unre- 
lated fashion, 9; listless catechism, 5. 

Other weakest features reported a few times each were : em- 
phasis upon the mere acquisition of facts; no definite aim 
or objectives; teacher did all the thinking; pupils spoke in 
very low and indistinct tones; short, fragmentary answers; 
poorer pupils neglected; poor assignment; no guiding prob- 
lems; many inaccuracies; rambling diffuseness ; lack of defi- 
nite accomplishment; and bookish abstractions. 

1 These figures are exclusive of those given in reference to the assignment. 

139 



V. Critical Comments 

The critical comments made by the several observers add but 
little to the material already gained but rather emphasize the main 
characteristics as indicated in the preceding divisions of the obser- 
vations. The most frequent critical comments were: the presenta- 
tion was formal; there was lack of definite organization of subject- 
matter and of procedure; there was no definite aim to the teaching; 
the attitude of the pupil was that of indifference; the work of the 
class room was slow and listless; the work of instruction was ab- 
stract and bookish ; no emphasis was given to any particular topics 
or problems; there was a failure to clinch the points made; the 
pupils showed lack of initiative ; no responsibility was thrown upon 
the pupils; mere text-book work; there was no supplementary 
reading. 

General Summary of Class-room Teaching 
Class Routine. — With regard to class routine the following were 
the outstanding characteristics as reported by the observers. The 
high school instructors observed wasted practically no time in begin- 
ning the work of the recitation, approximately 57 percent entering 
immediately into the work. Another 37 percent spent three minutes 
or less in getting ready for the lesson. In 57 percent of the recita- 
tions no materials other than the text-book were used. In the 80 
recitations where other materials were employed, they were sys- 
tematically and economically handled in 85 percent of the cases. In 
61 percent of the recitations the conditions were favorable for work, 
and in 24 percent they were decidedly unfavorable. In 15 percent 
of the recitations the conditions for work were fair, with hindering 
features. 

Assignment and Study Guidance. — There was considerable 
variation in the practice of the instructors observed as to the time of 
making the assignment. The most common practice was to make 
it at the end of the recitation period, this being done in 55 percent of 
the recitations. The next most common place was at the beginning 
of the recitation, where it was made in approximately 29 percent of 
the cases. One of the most striking facts with respect to the assign- 
ment was the little time given to it. Only one minute or less was 

140 



given to it in 48 percent of the recitations observed. In 35 percent 
of the recitations the time devoted to the making of the assignment 
was from one to five minutes. In only 28 percent was the assign- 
ment taken by the pupils in any written form, while in 16 percent it 
was checked in the text-book and in 56 percent no record of the 
assignment was made by the pupils. In 57 percent of the recitations 
the assignment made was vague and indefinite; in approximately 
73 percent it was practically unmotivated. In 25 percent of the 
recitations where there was motivation, the motive for study was 
the impending Regents examinations. Including motivation 




Diagram 14. — Time given to the making of the assignment of lessons. Percent 
of the 179 recitations studied 



through local school examinations, the motivation was attempted 
through mention of examinations in 28 percent of the recitations 
observed. 

In 73 percent of the cases the assignment was made in pages of 
the text-book only. Fifty-nine percent of the assignments were 
made with no guidance in the way of suggesting methods of attack, 
suggesting guiding topics, or by calling attention to important prob- 
lems. Only rarely did the pupils enter into the making of the 
assignment by suggesting problems and topics of interest to them. 
In only 5 percent of the assignments observed were references given 

141 



to supplementary reading. Differentiation as to work for individuals 
or groups was made in the assignment in 3 percent of the recitations. 

All data on the assignment indicate that it is one of the weak 
features in the class-room work in the rural high school. While a 
few instructors used it as a vital part of the teaching process, as a 
means of directing and stimulating interest in the work to be done, 
in the greater proportion of instances it consisted in indicating 
briefly the gross limits within which the task for the following day 
lay. It was vague and indefinite. In the main it was not made in 
sufficient detail to orientate or direct the pupils either through 
guiding topics or through the suggestion of vital problems tending 
to stimulate their intellectual curiosity. 

The Conduct of the Recitation. — In the conduct of the recita- 
tion as concerned the lesson previously assigned there was much 
variation of method, with certain predominant characteristics. In 
55 percent of the classes the aim of the lesson was fairly definite and 
in 45 percent it was vague and indefinite, in 26 percent of the cases 
being so indefinite as to be unrecognizable by the observer. In the 
majority of the recitations the aim of the lesson was remote and 
formal. 

The four most frequent types of lessons observed were in the 
order of frequency: review of preceding work, prominent in 46 per- 
cent of the lessons; the catechizing on the lesson assigned for the 
day, used in 45 percent of the recitations; the development type, a 
prominent feature in 28 percent; and the drill type, occurring in 
24 percent of the lessons observed. 1 

The procedure or method of attack was varied, more than one 
procedure being used during a lesson period in the majority of 
classes. The methods of attack used were in the order of their fre- 
quency: question and answer, blackboard work, telling or lectur- 
ing, topical discussion, seat work, reading of the text accompanied 
by discussion, demonstration and laboratory, criticism of work pre- 
viously prepared by the class, oral drill, translation, class reports, 
and taking notes and dictation. The question and answer procedure 

1 In most cases the recitation was not a pure type, but during the lesson period 
changed from one type to another, so that most recitations represented at least 
two types. 

142 



was the outstanding method, being a prominent feature of 76 per- 
cent of the recitations observed. Blackboard work was second in 
frequency, occurring in practically one- third of the cases. The tell- 
ing or lecture method of attack was used by instructors to a great 
extent in 27 percent of the recitations. Topical discussion and class 
reports were employed in 15 and 6 percent respectively. 

The questions used by the instructors were about equally divided 
between the thought stimulating and the memory types. In ap- 
proximately 35 percent of the recitations, many questions of the 
"yes or no" type were used. Approximately 40 percent of the ques- 
tions used were clear and definite. A small proportion of the ques- 
tions suggested their own answers ; some were stereotyped in form ; 
and approximately three percent of the instructors answered their 
own questions without giving the pupils an opportunity to respond. 
Thirty percent of the instructors repeated the answers given by 
pupils to from one-fourth to one-half of the questions asked. In 50 
percent of the classes observed all the pupils were called upon, while 
in 29 percent only one-half or fewer of the pupils in the class were 
given an opportunity to recite. 

During the recitation, in only 40 percent of the classes were pupils 
encouraged to contribute new material. In 35 percent of the classes 
the pupils were permitted to express views other than those of the 
text. In 60 percent of the recitations pupils were not required to 
give definite facts supporting their answers to questions asked. 

The formal nature of much of the instruction observed is indi- 
cated by the following facts: In 45 percent of the recitations no 
devices were used to give concreteness to the class-room work. Ob- 
jects were employed in five percent of the classes; maps in approxi- 
mately four percent; and specimens and charts in three percent of 
the recitations. Eighty-nine percent of the recitations contained 
no references to other school subjects and 72 percent made no con- 
nections with other things within the pupils' experience. 

In the teaching of form or drill subjects, or form phases of other 
subjects, 88 recitations were observed. In practically 83 percent 
the responses made by the pupils were in the main accurate and in 
17 percent of the classes inaccurate. In approximately 57 percent 
the responses were given by the pupils with confidence and in 43 

143 



percent with doubt. In 38 percent of the recitations, when errors 
were made in the replies of pupils, they were immediately checked 
up and the pupil who made the error was required to make the cor- 
rect response; in the other 62 percent the pupil was left, having 
made only the incorrect response. In 38 percent of the recitations, 
one-half or fewer of the corrections were made by members of the 
class. The pupils were given practice in applying known facts and 
principles to problems containing new elements in 70 percent of the 
88 classes and to new elements in miscellaneous order in 63 percent. 
In 56 percent of the recitations in which all or a portion of the period 
was devoted definitely to drill, the drill work was listless; in the 
other 44 percent it was "snappy." In 46 percent of the form type 
of lessons observed with time definitely given to drill accuracy was 
stressed while speed was given attention in less than 11 percent of 
the classes. In approximately 54 percent of the classes with definite 
drill work pivotal points in the lesson were emphasized. In general 
the recognized principles of teaching the form or drill subjects were 
little followed by the rural high school instructors observed. 

General Observations. — Under the heading "general observa- 
tions" the observers of high school instruction gave attention to the 
broader and more comprehensive phases of the recitation, those 
things which characterized it as a unit of the educative process. The 
following give the main points as reported: The attitude of 
the pupils was attentive in approximately 74 percent of the 
classes observed and inattentive and indifferent in 26 percent. In 
one-fourth of the recitations the pupils were disorderly. The most 
frequent causes given by the observers for the disorderliness and 
indifference were: formal, lifeless treatment of the subject; lack of 
stimulation; lack of aim to the recitation; nothing for the pupils to 
do; instructor took up all the time; and lack of preparation on the 
part of the pupils. 

Desirable habits of work were not emphasized in a rather large 
proportion of the classes. Punctuality in preparing the work of the 
assignment was not required in 24 percent of the classes ; neatness 
of work was neglected in 19 percent, thoroughness was lacking in 
20 percent; and in 22 percent of the classes observed no responsi- 
bility was thrown upon the pupil. In 50 percent of the recitations, 

144 



from one-half to three-fourths or more of the period was taken up by 
the teacher talking. In 66 percent of the recitations the instructor 
gave evidences of preparation for the classroom work, and in the 
other 34 percent he had apparently made little or no preparation. 
The pupils were well prepared in 69 percent of the classes and un- 
prepared in 31 percent. All the pupils were kept occupied in 57 per- 
cent of the classes, while in 22 percent one-fourth or fewer were kept 
occupied throughout the recitation. In over 30 percent of the reci- 
tations no important points in the lesson stood out in the mind of 
the observer as having been adequately developed, the work main- 
taining a dead level throughout the class period. 

Many instances of teaching strong in certain respects were noted. 
The most frequently mentioned strong features of class-room work 
as reported were: insistence upon accuracy and thoroughness; 
stimulating the interest of the pupils; the enthusiasm of the instruc- 
tor for his work; good class discussions; and skill in conducting 
drill. Other strong features not so frequently mentioned were: 
skill in the development of the lesson; good organization of the 
recitation; skilful emphasis upon pivotal points in the lesson; skill 
in the making of the assignment; instructor's mastery of his sub- 
ject; use of pupils' experiences; and the patient, sympathetic atti- 
tude of the instructor. 

The most common weak features of the work in the class room 
were: " the teacher did everything " ; no phases of the lesson given 
particular emphasis: no organization of the lesson material as a 
teaching unit ; lack of responsibility on the part of the pupils ; dead, 
formal treatment of subject-matter; the treatment of a great mass 
of details in unrelated fashion; and listless questioning. 

In conclusion, the following are some of the most prominent char- 
acteristics of the instruction as observed in the rural high schools. 
In the main the teachers showed a conscientious, earnest attitude 
toward their work. Many instances of teaching strong in certain 
respects were found. As a whole, however, the work of the class 
room was of a formal, abstract type. Few supplementary materials 
were used in the way either of readings or of devices to make teach- 
ing more concrete. But little use was made of the sources in the 
community available to the pupils. In the main the work lacked 

io 145 



definiteness and immediacy of aim, no real objectives standing out 
as the goals to be attained. Almost no use was made of the assign- 
ment as an integral part of the teaching process. The major part 
of the work might be characterized as informational, with emphasis 
upon the memorizing of a mass of material. Finally, the teaching on 
the whole was not of a type to stimulate pupils to initiative, to 
originality, to the evaluation of materials, or to the assuming of per- 
sonal responsibility for results. 



146 



CHAPTER VII 
THE CURRICULUM 

Section 1. — The Existing Curricula 

THE first part of the study of curriculum is devoted to the 
existing curricula in the rural high schools of the State. 
The data used as the basis for this phase of the study were 
derived from two sources: (1) statistics and reports of the State 
Department of Education; and (2) reports coming directly from 
principals of rural high schools. The first question considered is 
that of the present curriculum offerings. 

Subjects Offered in the Rural High School. — The report of 
609 rural high schools to the State Department for 1919-20 shows 
that practically all schools gave a year of English for each year of 
work offered and that 53 percent of them offered a course in English 
grammar and 4.3 percent a course in the history of English litera- 
ture. Ninety-five percent of the schools gave first year Latin; 93 
percent second year Latin; 56 percent third-year Latin; and 34 
percent fourth-year Latin. Seventy-five percent gave French I, 
69 percent French II, and over 13 percent French III. Ten per- 
cent offered Spanish I and eight percent Spanish II. Practically 
all schools gave elementary algebra; 65 percent intermediate 
algebra; 12 percent advanced algebra; 88 percent plane geometry; 
21 percent solid geometry; and ten percent trigonometry. Over 91 
percent of the schools gave elementary biology; 69 percent gave 
physics; and 24 percent chemistry. Physical geography was 
offered by over 17 percent of the schools and general science by 
three percent. 

Seventy-eight percent of the schools gave ancient history; 36 
percent the history of Great Britain and Ireland; eight percent 
modern history; 76 percent American history; and over 88 percent 

147 





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149 



gave civics. Three percent gave economics, and none offered 
sociology. Commercial subjects, such as commercial arithmetic, 
geography, elementary bookkeeping, shorthand, typewriting, and 
business writing, were offered in from 15 to 25 percent of the schools. 
Approximately one-half of the schools gave courses in drawing and 
19 percent offered mechanical drawing. Agriculture was taught in 
eight percent of the schools and homemaking in 1 1 percent. 

Required Subjects. — Three hundred and eighty-five schools 
reported as to the subjects required of all pupils. All of those 



Table 63.— 


•Subjects Required of All Pupils as Reported 


BY THE 


Princi- 






pals of 385 Rural High Schools 






















Per- 




1-49 














cent 




pupils 














exclud- 


Type of 


less 
than 


1-49 

pupils 


50-99 


100-149 


150 or 


Total 


Per- 
cent 


ing 

schools 


schools 


4 vears 


4 year 


pupils 


pupils 


more 




of 


doing 




of 


schools 






pupils 




total 


less 




H. S. 














than 




work 














4 years' 
work 


Eng. (each 


















year) .... 


52 


159 


106 


45 


23 


385 


100.0 


100.0 


Latin I . . . 


31 


78 


21 


11 




141 


36.6 


33.0 


Latin II . . . 


27 


75 


21 


9 




132 


34.3 


31.5 


Latin III . . 




20 


4 






24 


6.2 


7.2 


Latin IV. . . 




10 


4 






14 


3.6 


4.2 


French I . . . 


15 


56 


15 


8 




94 


24.4 


23.7 


French II. . 


12 


55 


15 


7 




89 


23.1 


23.1 


Ele. Alge- 


















bra 


51 


159 


105 


41 


21 


377 


97.9 


97.9 


Int. Alge- 


















bra 


7 


26 


9 


6 


3 


51 


13.2 


13.2 


Plane Ge- 


















ometry. . 


43 


154 


102 


41 


21 


361 


93.8 


95.5 


Ancient 


















History. . 


29 


101 


56 


15 


11 


212 


55.0 


54.9 


Modern 


















History. 


9 


30 


18 


3 


2 


62 


16.1 


15.9 


American 


















History . . 


20 


159 


106 


45 


23 


353 


91.7 


100.0 


Civics 


44 


150 


106 


44 


22 


366 


95.1 


96.7 


Biology ... 


48 


156 


104 


37 


19 


364 


94.5 


94.9 


Botany ... 


1 










1 


0.3 




Physics .... 


10 


120 


63 


20 


11 


224 


58.2 


64.2 


Chemistry . 






5 






5 


1.3 


1.5 



150 



replying required English each year. Almost 37 percent required 
Latin I and over 34 percent Latin II. A small number of schools 
required Latin III and IV. About one-fourth of the schools 
required two years of French. Ninety-eight percent of the schools 
reporting required elementary algebra; 13 percent intermediate 
algebra; and 94 percent plane geometry. Ancient history was a 
required subject in 55 percent of the schools; modern history in 16 
percent; American history in 92 percent, and civics in 95 percent. 
Biology was required by 95 percent of the schools, physics by 58 
percent, chemistry by 1.3 percent and botany by one school. 

Excluding from the total number of schools reporting the 52 
schools doing less than four years of high school work, and comput- 
ing the percentages on the basis of the 333 four-year schools, changes 
the percentages but little. It lowers the percentages in Latin I 
and Latin II, approximately 3 percent each, and increases slightly 
the percentages in respect to Latin III and IV. The percentage 
requiring physics is raised from 58 percent to 64 percent. All the 
four-year schools required American history and practically all re- 
quired civics. 

Subjects Offered as Electives in 385 Rural High Schools. 
— The same schools reporting on subjects offered as electives show 
that beyond the more formal subjects usually regarded as college 
preparatory there is little or no opportunity for election in the rural 
high schools. A pupil who does not expect to go to college cannot 
get in the rural high school, in the majority of cases, subjects of 
more immediate value to him than those taught primarily to satisfy 
college requirements. The electives are in the main in the foreign 
languages, in advanced mathematics, in physics and chemistry, 
and in ancient and modern European history. Approximately 
four percent of the 385 schools reporting offered economics as an 
elective, 18 percent offered commercial arithmetic and commercial 
geography. Seven percent offered mechanical drawing and 14 
percent elementary drawing. Other subjects mainly of the com- 
mercial type were offered by a small proportion of schools. Agricul- 
ture and homemaking were offered by 10 and 9 percent respectively 
of the schools reporting. 

151 



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152 



Percent of Pupil's Time Devoted to Various Subjects. — 
A study of 184 rural high schools chosen at random from the schools 
of each class on the basis of number of pupils enrolled indicates that 
on the average the pupil's time and energy are given in approxi- 
mately the following percents to the various subjects. These per- 
cents are computed on the basis of all pupils actually enrolled in 
each subject in the 184 schools, taking into account the number of 
periods given each subject per week and estimating each pupil's 
program as being four subjects a day. These percentages do not 
show the variation among different schools but do undoubtedly 
indicate approximately the relative amount of emphasis given the 
various subjects in the rural high schools as a whole. 

Percentage of pupil's time given to various subjects throughout 
the high school course: 

Percent 

English 23.67 

Latin 13.01 

French 6.74 

Spanish 0.89 

Mathematics 17.68 

Physical sciences (physics and chemistry) 2.91 

Physical geography 0.70 

Biological sciences (biology, botany, zoology, physiology) . . 7.66 

Foreign history 5.86 

American history and civics 6.01 

Economics 0.06 

Sociology 

Study of occupations 

Agriculture 1.30 

Homemaking 1.67 

Mechanical drawing, wood-turning, machine shop 0.48 

Commercial subjects 5.99 

Miscellaneous subjects 5.37 

The above data indicate that on the average over 44 percent of 
the pupil's time is given to the study of languages including English, 
or almost 21 percent excluding English. In other words, over one- 
fifth of all the time the rural boy or girl spends in high school is 
devoted to the study of a foreign language. Almost 18 percent of 
his time is given to mathematics as compared with 11.27 percent 
given to all the other sciences. In other words, he gives more time 
to the study of mathematics than he gives to the natural sciences 
and the social sciences, including American history and civics, but 

i53 



Agriculture 
Home- making 
Machlneshop etc *^^-«" 


,M1 


Bcellaneou3 
Subjects 


x5\ 


5* 




/CommerclaA 

/ \ Subjects \ 

/ N6* \ 




English 
34jC 


/ Natural X. 
/ Science N 
/ 11$ 






American 
1 History, •* 

\ Social 'foreign/ 
\ Science Hist./ 
\ *° / 


^^^r 


\ Foreign 
\ Languages 
\ 2l£ 


\ / Mathematics \ 
\ / 18£ \ 



Diagram 15. — Percent of pupil's time given to various subjects throughout the 
high school course 



excluding foreign history. He gives as much time to the study of 
foreign languages as he gives to natural sciences, agriculture and 
the social sciences, excluding foreign history. 

Activities Engaged in by Recent Rural High School Grad- 
uates. — Another angle from which to judge the curriculum of the 
rural high school is through a study of the activities in which its 
graduates engage. This question was asked of the high school 
principals and 270 replied in detail. This item gives the type of 
activity engaged in in the spring of 1921 by 2,683 graduates of the 
two preceding years. Combining the figures for the two years 
shows that approximately two percent were married. Five and 
four- tenths percent were at home, 18.2 percent teaching in rural 
schools, 11.7 percent in business, 1.9 percent nursing, 2.3 percent 
in the trades, and 3.5 percent farming. Practically 28 percent 
were in college, 22.5 percent in a normal school, and 4.5 percent 
were engaged in various other types of activities. 

154 



Table 65. — Activities Engaged in in 1921 by 2,683 Rural High School 
Graduates of 1919 and 1920, as Reported by the Principal 



Type of activity 



In college 

In normal school 

Teaching 

In business 

At home 

Farming 

In a trade 

Married 

Nursing 

Miscellaneous. . 



Schools with 1-99 


Schools with 100 or 




pupils 




more pupils 


Grand 
total 














1919 


1920 


Total 


1919 


1920 


Total 




191 


202 


393 


180 


177 


357 


750 


129 


247 


376 


77 


150 


227 


603 


138 


153 


291 


106 


92 


198 


489 


109 


81 


190 


75 


48 


123 


313 


35 


71 


106 


13 


25 


38 


144 


35 


36 


71 


13 


10 


23 


94 


24 


31 


55 




6 


6 


61 


25 


14 


39 


7 


10 


17 


56 


20 


11 


31 


10 


10 


20 


51 


20 


29 


49 


36 


37 


73 


122 



Per- 
cent 



27.9 

22.5 

18.2 

11.7 

5.4 

3.5 

2.3 

2.1 

1.9 

4.5 



These returns indicate that the majority of the graduates of the 
rural high schools do one of four things: go to college, to a normal 
school, teach in the rural schools of the State, or enter business. 
They indicate that about nine of each one hundred of the boys who 
graduate from the high school take up farming. A significant fact 
to be noted here is that, while the curricula of the rural high school 
and the standards set up are designed primarily for preparation for 
college, only approximately one-third of the graduates enter college. 
Keeping in mind that one-third or less of those who enter the rural 
high school graduate, it is evident that the work of the school at the 
present time in the main is of a nature suited to meet more or less 
directly the needs of only one out of nine of the pupils who enter 
upon a high school course. Conceding that a curriculum emphasiz- 
ing foreign languages and mathematics best meets also the needs of 
those going to normal schools, which is very doubtful, it is meeting 
directly the requirements of only 50 percent of its graduates or one 
out of every six of the pupils who begin high school work. Recog- 
nizing also the fact that the proportion of high school graduates 
going on to higher institutions has very materially increased in the 
past decade and will probably continue to increase, nevertheless it 
seems safe to conclude that the curricula as constituted at present 

155 



would be adapted at best to but a minority of the pupils entering 
the rural high school. This conclusion seems justified since the 
proportion of pupils graduating from high schools as compared 
with the number entering has changed but very gradually over a 
considerable period of years. 

It seems clear that the rural high school must always keep the 
door of opportunity open for those pupils planning to continue their 
training in higher institutions. It seems equally clear that this 
should not be done by neglecting the needs of the great majority of 
pupils who cannot or do not continue their school training beyond 
one or more years in the high school. At the present time the work 
offered in the first two years of the rural high school curriculum is 
almost entirely limited to subjects required for college entrance. 

The Adaptation of the Curriculum Elements to the Pupil 
as Indicated by the Percentage of Failures 

One of the principles underlying all modern education is that the 
curriculum elements and the standards of achievement set up 
should be suited to the needs and abilities of the pupil. Applied to 
secondary education, this means that the work of the secondary 
school should be adapted to the abilities of the pupils of secondary 
school age who have completed the work of the elementary school. 
Conservatively speaking, the public high school particularly has as 
its responsibility the serving of the educational needs of all persons 
of high school age who have completed the elementary school. It 
must, if it is to meet its objectives, select by differentiation and not 
by elimination. 

The study of the curriculum content of the rural high school 
shows that it is designed primarily to prepare pupils for college. 
Its program of studies in the main contains only the older, more 
traditional, college preparatory subjects and only in a small degree 
the newer college preparatory studies. The data on the percentage 
of failures in the various academic subjects over a period of twelve 
years indicate that the standards of achievement set in these sub- 
jects are not suited to the maturity and abilities of the pupils in the 
rural high school. Table 66 gives the percentage of pupils failed in 
eight academic subjects over a period of twelve years. Table 69 

is6 



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157 



Table 68. — Percent of 


Pupils Failing in 15 Subjects in 75 V^ 
High Schools' 


'isconsin 


Subject 


Percent 
failing 


Subject 


Percent 

failing 


Subject 


Percent 
failing 


English 1 

English 2 

English 4 

Latin 1 

Latin 2 


10.0 

7.0 

3.0 

12.0 

7.0 


German 1 

German 2 

Algebra 

Geometry 

Physics 


10.0 

5.0 

14.0 

13.0 

3.0 


Phys. Geog. . . . 
Anc. History. . 

Cooking 

Sewing 

Manual Train- 
ing 


10.0 

10.0 

2.0 

2.0 

3.0 



shows the percentage of pupils failed in the eight academic subjects, 
based on a study of approximately 1000 pupils, a random selection 
for each subject in June, 1920. 

The data referred to show that taken over the twelve year period 
the lowest average percentage of failure was in English IV with 12.6 
percent. The highest percentage of failure was in second year 
Latin, with an average of 32 percent, and the second highest in 
elementary algebra, with 31 percent. A significant fact is that the 
average percentage of pupils failed for the twelve years 1907-1918 
in all academic subjects was 28.8 percent. 

A study of the distribution of rural high school pupils in eight 
academic subjects on the basis of grades received in the Regents 
examinations in June, 1 920, shows a similar high percentage o f failure . 
It also shows that over one-third of the pupils who passed received 
grades between 60 and 69, 60 being the passing mark. (Table 69.) 

It should be noted also that the data presented do not give a com- 
plete picture of the conditions as they exist. The figures given show 
only the percentage of pupils failing who have been admitted to 
the examinations. A considerable percentage of pupils who have 
taken the work in the various subjects are not permitted by the 
local authorities to take the Regents examinations. It is the gen- 
eral practice in the rural high schools to admit to the examinations 



1 Janet R. Rankin: A Study of Students Dropped, Failed and Promoted in 
High School Subjects, Educational Administration and Supervision, Vol. 3 
p. 15, 1917. 

is8 



Table 69. — The Distribution of Rural High School Pupils in Eight 
Academic Subjects on the Basis of Grades Received in the Regents 
Examinations in June, 1920. (Based on the Grades of Approximately 
1,000 Pupils in Each Subject) 1 



Subject 



Biology 

Elementary Algebra 

English II 

English III 

English IV 

Latin II 

Ancient History. . . 
American History . . 



Percentage of pupils receiving grade indicated 



Failed 60-69 



47 
38 
26 
17 
9 
34 
21 
14 



41 
24 
36 
35 
31 
37 
38 
35 



70-79 



9 
17 
26 
32 
35 
18 
23 
32 



80-89 



2 

13 
11 
14 
21 

9 
13 
16 



90-100 



only those pupils whose record for the term is of such a character as 
to indicate their successful completion. 

Any system of public high schools failing through a system of 
examinations on an average more than 28 out of every 100 pupils 
enrolled in its academic subjects over a period of twelve years 
should be viewed with much concern. It would seem that such a 
high percentage of failures, together with the fact that a large 
percentage of the successful pupils crowd close about the passing 
standard, indicates clearly the need of a careful study of the existing 
aims, curriculum content and organization, and standards of achieve- 
ment of the rural high school. It should be examined minutely in 
the light of the interests, abilities and life purposes of the pupils for 
whose training it should exist. Granting that the results of the 
present system are the selection and preparation of a superior 
group of individuals for college work, these results would seem to be 
attained at too great a cost. 

The State Syllabi for Secondary Schools. — The replies of 
rural high school instructors to the question as to their use of the 
State syllabi in the various subjects indicate that over 80 percent of 
them follow the syllabi to the letter or very closely. Less than 20 
percent of the teachers reporting use them only as a guide in organ- 
1 From a study by T. L. Bayne, graduate student, Cornell University. 

159 



izing their work. The facts obtained through the observation of 
high school instruction and through the visitation of rural high 
schools and conferences with high school principals and teachers 
agree with the preceding statements. The fact that the subject 
matter of the rural high school is so largely determined by the 
syllabi makes important the question as to the nature and content 
of the syllabi and their suitability to the needs of the pupils and 
teachers of the rural high school. 

A critical study of the secondary school syllabi now in use shows 
that they are of two general types: The first type consists only of a 
brief outline of the subject matter, with little or no suggestion as to 
the aims and objectives desirable. In this type practically no hints 
as to methods of presentation or as to supplementary sources and 
materials are given. No indication as to the relative values of the 
various elements of the course is offered and no optional or alter- 
native topics of study are suggested. The second type of syllabus 
differs from the first in that it suggests more or less adequately 
desirable aims in the teaching of the subject: offers suggestions as to 
methods of presentation: suggests sources of materials and other 
educational means: and in some cases gives required, alternative, 
and optional topics and problems. Examples of syllabi belonging 
entirely or largely to the first type are those in mathematics, the 
physical sciences, manual training, the modern foreign languages, 
and civics. Examples of the second type are the syllabi in biology, 
drawing, English, history, and Latin. 

Since these syllabi are the teacher's courses of study in the rural 
high schools, some of them are considered in detail with reference to 
certain desirable characteristics of a State course of study. A State 
course of study, or syllabus, in any secondary school subject should: 

1 . Give the aims and objectives (purposes) of the course. 

2. Suggest the best methods of teaching the subject and furnish 
the teacher with a selected list of references on the teaching of the 
subject in question. 

3. Give the principles underlying the selection and organization of 
subject matter in secondary school subjects and the specific princi- 
ples pertaining to the subject. 

4. Give the subject matter of the course grouped about the im- 

160 



portant general topics (with required, alternative, and optional 
topics and problems). 

5. Give suggestions for the adaptation of subject matter to dif- 
ferent types of schools under differing local conditions. 

6. Give definite references to sources of data, study materials and 
readings suited to the maturity and training of the pupils for whom 
it is intended. 

7. Suggest the time to be given to the study and the possible 
variation as to year in which it is to be offered. 

Civics and Physics as Examples of Type One. — The syllabi in 
civics and physics are taken as examples of type one and are ana- 
lyzed in the light of the desirable characteristics given above. 

(a) The syllabus in civics contains no definite analysis of the aims 
and objectives of the course. It does not suggest desirable methods 
of teaching the subject beyond a brief statement on the preliminary 
approach, and a suggestion as to the desirability of securing the 
cooperation of local officials. It offers no references to discussions 
of objectives, choice and organization of subject matter, or methods 
of teaching as an aid to the instructor. Beyond a brief general dis- 
cussion on the desirability of proceeding from local to other types of 
civic institutions, there are no definite suggestions as to the special 
principles underlying the selection and organization of subject mat- 
ter in civics. In the body of the syllabus the topics to be studied are 
arranged under their appropriate headings as the school district, the 
town, the village, the city, etc. No indication is made, however, as 
to the relative importance of the various topics for different types of 
communities nor is any division made as to required, alternative, or 
optional topics. No concrete suggestions for the adaptation of sub- 
ject matter to the different types of schools are offered other than 
the statement: "In the city, municipal government, and, in the 
country, the government of the school district and the township 
should first be studied." Finally, the syllabus in civics gives no 
references to sources of facts, study materials, or readings. 

In conclusion, the syllabus in civics lacks in large part those char- 
acteristics which would make it adaptable and most useful in rural 
high schools. The contacts of rural pupils with the local, State, and 
national civic agencies, both voluntary and governmental, are so 
ii 161 



different from the contacts of urban pupils that the effective train- 
ing of either in this subject would seem to demand extensive adapta- 
tion of subject matter. Not only are the voluntary agencies existing 
for the promotion of community welfare in the country in the main 
different from those in the city, but the local governmental agencies 
also are different. The rural community also comes more directly in 
contact with certain phases of State and national government than 
does the urban community, and is served particularly by certain 
departments, as the United States Department of Agriculture. 

The syllabus gives no attention to the various rural organiza- 
tions, as the Farm and Home Bureaus, the Grange or other organiza- 
tions important in rural communities. 

(b) The syllabus on physics gives no concrete statements as to the 
aims and objectives which should guide the work in physics. No 
suggestions are made as to the methods found effective in teaching 
physics to high school pupils, nor references for the teacher on the 
teaching of the subject. It contains no adequate discussion of the 
principles pertaining particularly to physics. The body of the 
syllabus gives only the list of topics "deemed fundamental" to the 
course. No alternative or optional topics are indicated. No con- 
crete suggestions are made for adapting the teaching of physics to 
the needs and experiences of pupils of different community environ- 
ments or to groups of pupils of differing needs. No references to 
sources of information adapted to the abilities and interests of high 
school pupils are made. The syllabus on physics is, in short, a brief 
outline of a very formal traditional type. 

English and Biology as Examples of Type Two. — The syllabi on 
English language and literature and on biology belong in the main 
to type two and are analyzed in the light of the characteristics sug- 
gested, (a) The English syllabus begins with a sentence of great 
importance as bearing upon the question of State syllabi: "As this 
syllabus is designed for schools working under widely varying con- 
ditions, it is expected that each school, with this as a basis, will work 
out a detailed syllabus for itself, indicating the specific work for each 
half year." Throughout, the syllabus shows the desirable tendency 
to break away from the formality so common in secondary school 
English and in general agrees with the point of view presented in the 

162 



Report on Reorganization of English in Secondary Schools by the 
National Joint Committee on English. 

It gives in some detail the aims and objectives in teaching Eng- 
lish literature and expression (oral and written) in secondary schools 
and indicates in a general way phases to be emphasized in different 
years. It contains a brief discussion as to desirable methods of in- 
struction, but suggests no concrete references for aiding the teacher. 
It does not give any principles underlying the selection and organi- 
zation of subject matter for secondary schools, but does indicate 
some of the principles applicable to the selection and organization of 
work in English literature and expression. Required and optional 
units of work are suggested. Groupings of subject matter as to 
types are made. The syllabus contains suggestions as to the adapta- 
tion of the work, especially in composition, to pupils of different 
environments and interests. Suggested lists of supplementary read- 
ings in literature, classified according to types, are given, and atten- 
tion is called to the desirability of developing in pupils habits of 
reading contemporary literature in books and magazines. No 
references are indicated bearing upon oral and written expression. 
This would seem to be, particularly from the standpoint of the rural 
high school, a real weakness in the syllabus. 

In general the State syllabus in English, with the exception of its 
lack of concrete suggestions as to professional references to aid the 
teacher and as to study references to aid the pupil in oral and 
written composition, seems suited to the needs of the rural high 
school. The failure to give any unit of time entirely to American 
literature would appear to be a weakness from the standpoint of the 
values of literature in relation to American citizenship. 

(b) The syllabus on the biological sciences belongs in the main to 
the second type. Only the part dealing with elementary biology 
recommended as the beginning course in science for high schools is 
here considered. It is a general course, including plant, animal, and 
human biology. The emphasis of the course is largely upon the 
structural phases of biology, though the study of structure is linked 
up with the question of function. A considerable number of the 
topics touch upon the civic and economic bearings of biology though 



163 



these phases of the subject are not suggested as furnishing an angle 
of approach. 

As to the aims and objectives of a beginning course in biology the 
syllabus suggests four general aims but makes no analysis of the 
special objectives to be used as the goals of instruction. A very 
brief discussion of methods of study and suggestions as to methods 
of teaching is given. The syllabus contains, however, no references 
to books or articles on the teaching of biology or its content and 
organization in secondary schools as aids for the teacher of the sub- 
ject. Topics for study are given under the appropriate main head- 
ings and include prescribed, alternative, optional and suggested 
additional topics. 

No definite suggestions for the adaptation of subject matter to 
different types of schools or communities are made other than that 
"each teacher is at liberty to select the divisions and the topics that 
can be studied to the best advantage and to consider them at the 
time of year when material is most easily obtained." The syllabus 
contains no references to sources of reading for the pupil. 

In conclusion, the State syllabus on elementary biology has to a 
greater or less degree most of the characteristics of a good course of 
study, and should serve the needs of a well- trained teacher of the 
biological sciences working with good library and laboratory equip- 
ment. From the standpoint of the rural high school where the sub- 
ject is often taught by an inexperienced and poorly trained teacher 
it is insufficient. For the average teacher of the rural high school it 
should contain concrete references to discussions on the principles of 
selection and organization of science materials for high school pupils 
and the most successful methods of presentation. More detailed 
and concrete suggestions are needed as to the objectives of science 
teaching, particularly a beginning science, in secondary schools, and 
as to the possibilities of its adaptation to different local conditions. 
It is especially weak in its failure to give a list of references to the 
rich mine of literature on the various phases of biology and its appli- 
cation to social and economic life. 

A careful study of the teaching of biology in the rural high schools 
indicates that it is too frequently taught as a text-book subject with 
emphasis upon the memorization of classifications, definitions, and 

164 



structure. The high percentage of failures, particularly during the 
past eight years, indicates either that the standards of achievement 
set or the nature of the work required, or both, are not adapted to 
the ability of pupils in the first year of the rural high school. 

The analysis of the existing State syllabi for secondary schools 
shows that they do not in general meet adequately the needs of the 
rural high schools comprising in number of schools approximately 
80 percent of the high schools of the State. It is undoubtedly desira- 
ble that the State should offer syllabi for the rural high schools but 
these syllabi should be constructed with definite regard to the needs 
of the rural high school. They should serve as the basis upon which 
to build courses of study rather than as courses of study for the 
rural high schools. 

Size of Classes. — The data from 184 rural high schools selected 
at random and representing schools of each type on the basis of 
number of pupils enrolled show that: the median class in schools 
with an enrolment under 50 has 6.8 pupils; the median class in 
schools with an enrolment between 50 and 99 has 11.6 pupils; and 
the median class in schools with over 100 pupils has 17.2 pupils. 1 
These facts show that the smaller the schools the smaller are the 
classes. If the small rural high school is to offer a program of 
studies at all adequate to meet the demands of secondary education 
today, it is evident that the number of pupils in each class must 
always be less than in the larger schools. As a result the cost of 
instruction per pupil hour, assuming teachers equally well trained 
and paid, must be greater in the smaller schools. 

A study of the question as to the size of classes in the various sub- 
jects shows that there is great variation. As would be expected, the 
classes in subjects offered in the upper years of the course are smaller 
than classes in subjects given in the first or second year. (See 
Table 70.) 

Table 71 indicates the median size class in sixteen academic sub- 
jects commonly taught in the rural high schools' shows the varia- 
tion of the median for each subject from the median for all classes, 
and gives the estimated cost of instruction per pupil hour. It is seen 
that third- and fourth-year English cost approximately one-third 
more per pupil hour than first-year English in the schools with an 
1 See Table 21, page 44. 
i6 S 






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Elementary Algebra . 
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Plane Geometry. . . . 

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Elementary Biology. 
Ancient History 
American History . . . 



1 66 



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i/5KCC-t M 500'N3>N'OvOOv>0 f5 
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Latin III and IV 

French III and IV 
Elementary Algebra .... 
Intermediate Algebra. . . 

Plane Geometry 

Bioloe'v 


o.s 

EC 


> 

— 

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American History 

Estimated cost of in- 
struction per pupil 
hour in the median 
class for the school. . . . 



pq 



167 



enrolment under 50. In schools with 50 to 99 pupils third- and 
fourth-year English cost over twice as much per pupil hour as first- 
year English. In schools with an enrolment under 50, Latin III 
and IV and French III and IV have a per pupil hour cost for in- 
struction more than twice that of the median class for all subjects. 
In schools with 50 to 99 pupils the cost of instruction per pupil hour 
in Latin III and IV is almost four times as much as in the median 
class for schools of that type and in French III and IV it is over four 
and a half times that of the median class for the school. In schools 
with a pupil enrolment over 100 the cost of instruction per pupil 
hour in Latin III and IV is almost three times that of the median 
class in the school, and in French III and IV it is almost four times 
that of the median class. The per pupil hour cost of instruction in 
intermediate algebra in schools with an enrolment under 50 is prac- 
tically twice that of the median class. 

It should not be concluded that subjects taught in the rural high 
school at a high cost per pupil hour should be eliminated from the 
program of the school and that the number of subjects offered should 
be decreased. The great variation in the cost of instruction for 
different subjects does indicate, however, the need of a careful study 
of the curricula of the rural high school with a view to discovering a 
better organization of the program of studies and to determining on 
the basis of the actual needs of the pupil population the relative 
values of the subjects offered at present and of subjects that might 
be offered. As was suggested in the discussion on the organization 
of the rural high school there are probably possibilities of improving 
the curricula and programs of studies through the alternation of sub- 
jects and through beginning foreign languages every other year. It 
might be found economical in every way also for certain schools only 
in groups of neighboring rural high schools to offer certain advanced 
subjects as French III and IV or chemistry and for the other schools 
to send pupils desiring that subject to the school offering them. By 
such cooperation each school would be able to extend its program of 
studies in the direction of meeting more adequately the needs of the 
larger number of pupils enrolled. 

Contemporary Magazines as a Source of Supplementary 
Subject Matter. — A phase of high school work increasingly rec- 



ognized as important is the development in high school pupils of an 
interest in contemporary literature and problems of today and the 
habit of reading newspapers and magazines. This is primarily a 
curriculum problem. The newspaper and magazine afford valuable 
sources of supplementary reading particularly in the social and 



Table 72. — Magazines in Rural High School Libraries. Data from 403 
Schools as Reported by the Principal. Only Magazines Found in 
Five or More Schools are Listed 



Name of magazine 



None 

Literary Digest 

National Geographic. . . . 

Independent 

Outlook 

Current Events 

World's Work 

Youth's Companion. . . . 

Popular Mechanics 

Review of Reviews 

Popular Science Monthly 

Atlantic Monthly 

American 

St. Nicholas 

Scientific American 

American Boy 

Country Gentlemen .... 

Harper's Magazine 

Boy's Life 

Current History 

Rural New Yorker 

Ladies' Home Journal . . . 
Scribner's Magazine .... 
Saturday Evening Post . . 

Little Folks 

Current Opinion 

Current Topics 

Cornell Countrymen .... 
A daily Newspaper 



Size of school 



1-49 

pupils 
less 
than 

4 years 
work 



20 

26 

11 

7 

3 

12 

3 

6 

1 

4 

1 

1 
3 
1 
1 
2 



1-49 
pupils 



46 

80 

36 

37 

19 

31 

11 

16 

18 

12 

4 

6 

8 

3 
3 
1 
4 
2 
1 

3 
1 
1 
4 

2 

2 

12 



50-99 
pupils 



19 
65 
33 
31 
30 
24 
27 
19 
19 
17 
14 
7 
7 

10 
7 
2 
6 
3 
4 
2 
4 
4 
1 
2 
1 

1 

2 



100- 

149 

pupils 



6 

23 

23 

15 

18 

6 

13 

10 

9 

12 

7 

9 

3 

3 

1 

3 

2 

1 

1 

1 

3 

2 
2 

4 
1 

1 

5 



150 

and 

more 

pupils 



4 
14 
8 
2 
7 
2 
3 
2 
4 
3 
3 
1 
1 
1 
4 
2 



Total 



95 

208 

111 

92 

77 

75 

57 

53 

51 

48 

29 

23 

20 

17 

16 

11 

11 

9 

8 

7 

7 

7 

6 

6 

6 

5 

5 

5 

31 



Per- 
cent 



23.6 

51.6 

27.5 

22.8 

19.1 

18.6 

14.1 

13.2 

12.7 

11.9 

7.2 

5.7 

5.0 

4.2 

4.0 

2.7 

2.7 

2.2 

2.0 

1.7 

1.7 

1.7 

1.5 

1.5 

1.5 

1.2 

1.2 

1.2 

7.7 



169 



natural sciences and English and offer a vital means of contact be- 
tween the regular class-room work and life. 

The reports of 403 principals of rural high schools show that many 
of the schools have five or more magazines in the school library and 
a large proportion have one or more. Almost 24 percent of the 
schools, however, reported no current magazines in the library and 
only 8 percent had a daily newspaper. Over half of the schools re- 
porting had the "Literary Digest," approximately one-fourth of 
them had the "National Geographic Magazine" and 23 percent the 
"Independent." Other magazines in more than 10 percent of the 
libraries were the "Outlook," "Current Events," "The World's 
Work," "The Youth's Companion," "Popular Mechanics" and the 
" Review of Reviews." Eighteen other magazines were reported by 
five or more schools each. 

The data from this phase of the study indicate that, with the 
exception of a comparatively small proportion of the rural high 
schools, too little emphasis is placed upon the reading of current 
magazines. (See Table 72.) 

Section 2. — Some Principles Underlying the Building of the 
Rural High School Curriculum 

Any analysis of the curriculum of a school or type of schools that 
is to be constructive, to be more than a mere cataloging of facts as to 
existing conditions, must be based upon principles underlying curric- 
ulum building. It must evaluate the elements of the curriculum in 
the light of the purposes which that curriculum is to serve. 

It is assumed that the fundamental aim of the high school is the 
same whether it is situated in the city or in a rural or village com- 
munity. In either case its ultimate aim is individual and social 
efficiency. Because of differences in the experience background of 
rural high school pupils as contrasted with city high school pupils, 
it is probable that even for the attainment of objectives common to 
both types of schools, differences in subject matter will often be 
advisable. Because of differences in the life purposes of major 
groups in the pupil population, certain of the objectives of the rural 
high school may be other than those of the city high school. 

The basic principle by which ultimately any unit of the educa- 

170 



tional system must be evaluated is its effectiveness in promoting in- 
dividual and social efficiency with the time and materials it has at 
its command. The curriculum elements must be suited to the 
maturity and capacities of its pupils. These principles imply the 
constant adjustment of the school to the needs and demands of its 
pupils and of the society by which it is maintained. The school 
exists for the training of the individuals whom it is designed to serve 
to meet in the ablest fashion their problems while in school and later 
in life. 

One's success in meeting the various situations that arise depends 
largely upon his training in relation to life contacts. The principal 
life contacts of an individual today, as a member of the various 
social groups, whether in rural or urban communties, seem to be 
reducible to a comparatively small number of related but fairly 
distinct types. A partial analysis of these contacts gives a basis 
for determining the direction which the work of the high school 
should take if it is to attain its ultimate aim. The setting up of 
specific objectives and the selection of specific subject-matter ele- 
ments to be utilized in the attainment of these objectives must 
ultimately depend upon a detailed analysis of each of the general 
types of life contacts. For determining the work of the rural high 
school this analysis must be made with reference to the knowledge, 
abilities, attitudes and ideals necessary for making these contacts 
sympathetically, intelligently and effectively. It must also rec- 
ognize the fact that for individuals of different life aims the specific 
contacts within the groups will vary. 

In general the important groups of life contacts within which the 
specific contacts of the individual lie are: 

1. Health contacts, or contacts necessary: 

(a) As a follower of health practices and principles. 

(b) As a promoter of family and community health. 

2. Economic contacts, or contacts necessary: 
(a) As a producer. 

. (b) As a business man, manager, enterpriser, salesman. 

(c) As a consumer. 

3. Civic contacts, or contacts necessary: 
(a) As a voter. 

171 



(b) As a participator in the work of civic institutions, volun- 

tary and governmental. 

(c) As a promoter of civic progress. 

4. Social contacts, or contacts necessary : 

(a) As a participator in the social life of the community. 

(b) As a promoter of desirable phases of social life. 

5. Intellectual contacts, or contacts necessary: 

(a) As an individual interested in intellectual matters of to- 

day. 

(b) As a participator in the intellectual life and problems of 

the community and of society in general. 

(c) As a promoter of the intellectual life of the community. 

6. Recreational contacts, or contacts necessary: 

(a) As an individual interested and trained in desirable ways 

and means of recreation. 

(b) As a participator in desirable forms of recreation. 

(c) As a promoter of desirable forms of recreation in the com- 

munity. 

7. Esthetic contacts, or contacts necessary: 

(a) As an appreciator of the beautiful. 

(b) As an advocate of better opportunities for the enjoyment 

of the beautiful. 

(c) As a promoter of those things which add to the beauty of 

the community. 

8. Religious contacts, or contacts necessary: 

(a) As a follower of religious principles. 

(b) As a participator in the religious life of the community. 

(c) As a promoter of religious life. 

9. Moral-ethical contacts, or contacts necessary: 

(a) As a follower of moral and ethical standards. 

(b) As a promoter of moral and ethical practices and prin- 

ciples. 
Every individual today must make in one way or another contacts 
in at least all the groups given above. The important question 
for the community and for society in general is his attitude in 
making them and the ability with which he acts. Both for himself 
and for the community in which he lives, it is highly desirable that 

172 



he should make these contacts sympathetically, intelligently and 
effectively. To make them in a sympathetic, intelligent, and 
effective manner requires that he shall be in possession of certain 
knowledge, shall have formed certain habits of thinking, shall have 
developed certain abilities, and shall be governed by certain atti- 
tudes and ideals with respect to these contacts. 

The problem of the rural high school with respect to its objectives 
and consequently with respect to its program of studies and cur- 
riculum content and organization develops directly out of the life 
contacts needed today. Its solution requires a scientific approach 
and patient scientific study. Such a study must eventually result 
in a complete analysis of life contacts, and the discovery of those 
specific activities for which the school as an institution is respon- 
sible and their organization on the basis of their relative values 
and with regard to the abilities and needs of individuals of high 
school age reared in village and rural communities. 

Such a study will undoubtedly show that many of the abilities, 
attitudes, ideals, and elements of knowledge needed by the individual 
have been or should be gained in the elementary school. It will 
undoubtedly reveal the fact that many are partially or fully gained 
through social agencies other than the school, and that some are 
not feasible during the secondary school period. For example, 
most of the training desirable for religious contacts probably lies 
beyond the province of the high school, though the inculcation of 
certain knowledge and the development of certain attitudes and 
ideals may be found to be a desirable phase of its work. Again 
the problem of moral and ethical contacts may be found to run 
transversely through all other life contacts and not to require con- 
sideration as a special phase of high school training but rather as a 
part of all phases. All of these questions can be answered only 
gradually as the analysis proceeds and as the work of the school is 
determined with relation to the present-day needs of the individual 
and of the social groups to which he belongs. 

While the nature of the work of the rural high school is a problem, 
the final solution of which lies in the future, it seems possible in 
accordance with the partial analysis of life contacts above to set up 
provisionally at least the main objectives toward the realization of 

173 



which the rural high school should strive. Hence the following 
objectives are suggested as those necessary for the rural high school 
in working toward its aim: individual and social efficiency. The 
results of scientific study may alter them and must be depended 
upon to supply the facts necessary for establishing the specific 
objectives. 

1. To promote in the pupil a normal physical development. 

2. To guide each pupil toward the selection of a worthy life work 
and in planning his high school work in harmony with his choice. 

3. To train the pupil not going beyond the high school for intel- 
ligent self-support in some worthy type of life work within the 
limits of his stage of maturity, of his capacities, and of the time 
span of the rural high school. 

4. To promote the development in each pupil of a sense of his 
responsibility as a member of society and of a democracy (accept- 
ance of, and a feeling of responsibility for, the performance of civic 
duties). 

5. To stimulate and train each pupil so far as age and time permit 
to participate intelligently in promoting the welfare of society 
(service). 

6. To give each pupil training in some desirable forms of recrea- 
tion for his leisure time or moments of relaxation. 

7. To stimulate each pupil to continue his education after his 
school life is ended (to promote the development of some permanent 
appreciations, interests, habits, and desires for continued growth). 

8. To train each pupil, in so far as the age of the secondary school 
pupil makes desirable, to meet intelligently the responsibilities of 
home life and parenthood. 

9. To train each pupil through and in relation to all the work of 
the school in ethical habits and attitudes. 

10. To prepare those pupils who so desire to enter higher institu- 
tions of learning. 

In developing the studies, sequence of studies and student life of 
the rural high school to meet the requirements of the objectives 
suggested, or others to be established, and to give sufficient varia- 
tion to meet the needs of the groups of pupils for whom the curricula 
are designed, it is necessary to keep in mind the two great forces in 

174 



society. There is the integrating force tending to hold the various 
social groups together through common knowledge, common 
attitudes, and common ideals. On the other hand, there is the 
differentiating force tending to draw groups apart through lack of 
common knowledge, lack of common attitudes and ideals, and 
through the competition or antagonisms of local, partisan, and 
group interests. In a democratic society it is necessary to main- 
tain a balance between these forces. 

Upon the secondary school, both because of the maturity and 
interests of its pupils and because of the large number of pupils 
coming under its direction, would seem to rest the main responsi- 
bility for preserving the balance between these two forces. Every 
school program should contain subjects of an integrating nature 
and a high school program must, from the very nature of the objec- 
tives of secondary education, contain elements of the differentiating 
type. Up to the present time the high school, and the rural high 
school particularly, both because of a limited program and because 
of the relatively large proportion of required subjects, has worked 
mainly in the direction of integration. In the main, however, the 
content of the subjects taken by all pupils has been but indirectly 
related to the life of today, and hence has probably tended to 
develop in no vital sense the abilities, attitudes and knowledge 
elements of genuine integrating values. The program of the rural 
high school has offered comparatively little in the way of subjects 
of the differentiating type. If it is to attain its objectives, it must 
in the future give greater opportunity for differentiation and at the 
same time select its integrating subjects upon a more vital basis. 

As a guide for the further study of the curriculum groups of high 
school subjects and activities are offered which seem to meet, 
partially at least, the requirements of the types of life contacts 
represented in the rural community and the corresponding objec- 
tives of the rural high school. The subjects suggested are also 
grouped as predominantly integrating or differentiating in their 
nature. These groups are not to be thought of as inclusive, nor is 
it assumed that the present subject matter content is the best that 
is available. 



17s 



I. High school subjects predominantly integrating in character: 

A. English 

1. English and American literature (including current litera- 
ture in books and magazines). 

2. English language (oral and written expression). 

B. Social Science 

1. American history and modern European history. 

2. Community civics leading to State and national govern- 
ment. 

3. Economics and sociology. 

4. The study of occupations and readings about vocations. 

5. Current events. 

C. Natural Science 

1. General science. 

2. Hygiene, sanitation, etc. 

3. General biology, civic biology, botany. 

4. Physics and chemistry. 

D. Art 

1. Music. 

2. Drawing. 

3. Dramatics. 

E. General School Activities 

(Assemblies, clubs, athletics, and self-government organiza- 
tions as an integral part of the curriculum). 

II. Specializing and differentiating material: 

A. Greater intensity for individual pupils or groups of pupils in 
the study of selected materials in (I) in accordance with 
pupil's life purposes and interests or both. 

B. Foreign languages and literatures (when not made a general 
requirement) . 

C. Prevocational materials, such as: various types of shop work, 
clerical and commercial subjects, agriculture, home economics, 
etc. 

D. Vocational subjects, such as dairy farming, fruit growing, 
machine shop, printing, carpentry, etc. 

E. Subjects (definitely selected and organized in relation to the 

176 



vocation being prepared for), such as mechanical drawing, 
the various types of applied mathematics, applied chemistry, 
applied botany, commercial law, etc. 

It may be well at this point to indicate in some detail the inte- 
grating values of certain subject groups. For this purpose English 
and the social sciences are briefly considered. 

English is an integrating subject in the high school primarily 
because it is the vernacular of the nation, its medium of communica- 
tion and thought. Through his command of the English language 
the individual has the key to the appreciation and understanding of 
national life. Through written and oral composition in English 
classes all phases of school work and of community and national 
activity may be considered. Through the study and reading of the 
various types of literature of the past and present a knowledge and 
appreciation of the customs, traditions, problems and ideals of 
American life and of English-speaking peoples may be acquired. 
The experiences of the pupils are widened and the variety of 
these experiences increased. Intimate contacts with great char- 
acters and important events in the history of the country's develop- 
ment are made possible under the guidance of the school. The 
development of desirable habits of reading and of permanent 
interests may be stimulated. And finally, through literary and 
debating clubs, not only is the pupil made acquainted with valuable 
material but opportunities for the understanding and practice of 
group action are easily afforded him. 

The social sciences are integrating among others, in the following 
ways: They afford, through the very nature of their content, one of 
the means for arriving at an understanding of group action. They 
are the key to the study of the evolution of society and its institu- 
tions. They furnish a direct avenue to the knowledge and appre- 
ciation of the important social and civic institutions and their 
functions in society. Through the study of the social sciences 
should come the understanding of the nature and functions of law, 
and the relation of the individual to society. They are important 
means in leading the pupil to an understanding and appreciation 
of his obligations and responsibilities, social, civic, and moral. 

12 177 



Through their study and through the various activities of the school 
and of the community in which the high school pupil participates, 
they should lead to the development of abilities, attitudes and ideals 
of group action and social service. Through the study of occupa- 
tions and their characteristics and place in social welfare, the pupil 
may be given an insight into the interdependence and relationship 
of the various phases of human endeavor. Through the assigned 
and voluntary readings and discussions of current problems he may 
become acquainted with many types of social and civic questions 
of modern life. 

The philosophy of public secondary education in a democracy 
demands that the public high school should serve the needs of all 
persons of secondary school age who have completed the work of 
the elementary school. It should organize and direct its work 
toward developing individuals efficient in the activities of the life 
of today. It should organize its curricula to the end of giving the 
secondary school pupil the knowledge, habits, abilities, attitudes 
and ideals most effective in making the life contacts of today. It 
should not set up standards of scholarship, nor require of all pupils 
the study of subjects designed to meet the needs of only a minority 
or encouraging the elimination of large numbers of individuals who 
might be helped by all or a part of secondary education. Equal 
educational opportunities in secondary education are not given by 
requiring from all pupils a mastery of the same subjects. The 
content of high school curricula and the standards of achievement 
set up should be determined with direct reference to the maturity, 
abilities, and life purposes of the secondary school pupil, and to the 
existing social needs. 

Every year of high school work should be determined primarily 
with reference to its values as an educational unit. The academic 
work of the rural high school should in the main be liberalizing in 
the true sense of the word and particularly so in the first two years. 
Less than half its pupils ever reach the third year. This fact 
indicates that if the rural high school is to give the most effective 
kind of education for all concerned, the first two years of the curric- 
ulum should be made up largely of subjects of significant value in 
making the life contacts of today. The work should be as broad 

178 



and flexible as the resources of the school will permit. As a means 
it should afford as many opportunities as possible for the acquire- 
ment of knowledge, habits, abilities, attitudes and ideals of im- 
mediate value. Thus it would be genuinely liberalizing in its 
training. 

At the present time the subjects offered and required, particularly 
in the first two years, are subjects possessing little value to the 
pupil who does not complete a high school course and probably 
little of value also to the pupil who finishes high school but does not 
go to college. In general it seems that the rural high school would 
more nearly meet the objectives of secondary education if its 
curricula were organized with the strictly college preparatory sub- 
jects coming mainly in the last two years of the course. This 
would make it possible to introduce into the early years of the 
school subjects having direct bearing upon the contacts of modern 
life. 

An organization of curricula for rural high schools extending 
over a period of six years on a two cycle plan in which the work of 
the first three years would be determined in the light of pupil and 
community needs without reference to college preparation would 
be highly desirable. This would make possible in the first three 
years the emphasis of objectives largely neglected in the rural high 
school at present, especially in the discovery of the pupil's interests 
and abilities and in guiding him in the making of his plans for the 
future. Through increased emphasis upon phases of social and 
natural science and other subjects of large content values, and less 
emphasis upon abstract mathematics and foreign language, the 
needs of the larger proportion of pupils would probably be more 
directly met than at present. 

From the standpoint of organization the curriculum should 
gradually become differentiated into two or more fairly distinct 
curricula in the last three-year cycle. Or under the regular four- 
year type of school in the second year. Each of these curricula 
should be built about a special core of subjects designed to meet 
directly the needs of major groups of pupils. In addition each 
curriculum should contain certain subjects closely related to the 
core; certain subjects, as English and the social sciences, regarded 

179 



as necessary by society in all secondary school curricula; and cer- 
tain subjects of worthwhile content values affording a margin of 
free electives, as literature, art, and music. 

Generally speaking, all rural high schools should strive toward the 
attainment of all objectives of secondary education. The size of the 
school, the limitations as to teaching force and equipment, however, 
may make the attainment of certain objectives uneconomical for 
every school. Further study of the rural high school should be made 
as to the possibility and advisability of groups of neighboring high 
schools cooperating for the purpose of increasing their curriculum 
offerings as a group. It might be economical for only one school in a 
group to offer a certain academic subject or a vocational curriculum 
desired by only a small number of pupils in each school, and for the 
other schools to send their pupils desiring such work to this school. 
If certain schools should offer special lines of work not given 
by other neighboring schools, greater educational opportunities 
would be afforded all high school pupils attending any one of the 
schools. 

In the rural high school it would seem desirable that an advanced 
course in American history should be offered at least as early as 
the third year of the course. Restricting it to the fourth year means 
that only a small proportion of the pupils study American history in 
high school. While some of the problems of economics and sociology 
can be touched upon in the study of civics, which is usually taught 
in the first or second year, there is needed in the rural high school a 
course in the phases of economics and sociology most closely related 
to the more common life contacts. Because of the narrowness of the 
rural high school pupil's contacts with occupations it is especially 
desirable that he have an opportunity to broaden and deepen his 
knowledge of occupational opportunities. 

Section 3. — General Summary, with Suggestions for the 
Improvement of the Curriculum of the Rural High School 

The study of the curriculum of the rural high school from various 
angles and the observation of high school teaching tend to em- 
phasize a small number of outstanding characteristics as to its na- 
ture and content. 

180 



1. The work of the rural high school is restricted in the main to 
the older, more formal subjects of study. The content of its curricu- 
lum and the standards set up are still based largely upon preparation 
for college. 

2. The aims and objectives for the program of studies as a whole 
and for the separate subjects are vague and remote, except that the 
passing of the Regents examinations is an end prominent in the 
teaching of every academic subject in the rural high schools. 

3. The instruction in the subjects offered is formal and bookish, 
being unduly limited to a single text-book for each course. 

4. There is a strong tendency toward a slavish following of the 
State syllabi resulting in an undue uniformity of subject matter with 
a consequent neglect of possible local adaptations, this condition 
being aggravated by a system of uniform State examinations. 

5. There is too much attention given to preparation for examina- 
tions resulting in general in overemphasis of mechanical memorizing 
and underemphasis of the more vital elements of genuine intellectual 
development. 

6. In general there is a lack of recognition of the educational 
values of extra-class-room activities. 

7. Finally, as indicated by the percentage of failures in all aca- 
demic subjects in the rural high school, neither the subject matter 
nor the standards of achievement seem to be suited to the maturity, 
abilities, and interests of rural high school pupils. 

Recommendations 

In accordance with the preceding discussion and upon the basis 
of the results of the study of rural high school instruction and of the 
curricula from various angles, the following suggestions and rec- 
ommendations are made: 

Aims and Objectives. — One of the first needs of rural secondary 
education is a clear understanding as to desirable aims and objec- 
tives. This can come only as a result of a careful study of the life 
contacts which the pupil in the rural high school will need to make 
and those which he has already made. As a step in this direction it 
is recommended: 



1 . That there be formed a committee 1 acting in cooperation with 
the appropriate official in the State Department of Education and 
fitted to undertake the task by reason of their interest in and ac- 
quaintance with the problems of rural secondary education, to work 
toward the establishment of suitable objectives and reasonable 
standards for the rural high school. This committee should also 
devote attention to the development of suggested curricula for rural 
high schools based upon the objectives set up as a result of a thor- 
ough study of the requirements of present-day living, particularly in 
rural and village communities. It should further seek, directly or 
through subcommittees acting under its direction, to discover and 
establish specific objectives for the various subjects of study and to 
suggest an effective organization and arrangement of these subjects 
of study into curricula suited to meet the capacities, needs, and 
demands of the various groups of pupils in the rural high schools of 
the State. It is further suggested that the committee should at all 
times make use of the great body of men and women engaged in the 
actual work of administration, supervision, and instruction in rural 
secondary education in the local high schools and in the intermediate 
school units, and of country life organizations, thus operating to 
stimulate a State-wide study of rural high school problems. 

To insure the existence of an effective type of rural secondary 
education at all times in the future, plans should be formulated to 
promote in the State a continuous scientific study of the rural high 
school and its needs. These plans should be such as to enlist the 
services of the administrative, supervisory, and teaching forces of 
the rural high schools of the State and other agencies concerned with 
the problems of rural life. 

2. To facilitate and encourage the adaptation of the work of rural 
high schools to the needs of the community or region in which they 
are situated it is recommended that the State requirements in the 
matter of required subjects and in the subject matter of courses of 
study be limited to the minimum essentials necessary for the realiza- 

1 This general committee may be, if deemed desirable, the same as recom- 
mended for the study of the problems covering the administration and organiza- 
tion of the rural high school. 



tion of the educational objectives vital to State and national citizen- 
ship and health. 

3. It is recommended that all subjects of high school grade and 
taught by a qualified instructor be given equal recognition toward a 
diploma recognized by the State, provided (a) that the pupil meet 
the State requirements as indicated in the preceding recommenda- 
tion, and provided (b) that there has been continuity in the curricu- 
lum pursued by the pupil. 

4. It is recommended that State syllabi in the various secondary 
school subjects be prepared with attention given to the peculiar 
needs of the small high school as recommended by the committee 
referred to above, and that they be revised at least every five years 
in the light of the advancements made in the interim in the estab- 
lishment of objectives for the particular subject, in subject matter 
content and in methods of presentation. It is further recommended: 

(a) That these syllabi should offer a broad outline of the possible 
content of the subject based upon the most recent developments in 
secondary education, should be designed to suggest and guide in the 
formulation of a course of study rather than to serve as a course of 
study themselves. 

(b) That in syllabi in which portions of the content are required 
in accordance with (2) there shall be specifically indicated the objec- 
tives to be met and suggested units of subject matter for the attain- 
ment of these objectives, the remaining portions of the outline to be 
of the nature indicated in (a). 

(c) That a prominent feature of the syllabi should be a clear 
statement of accepted principles underlying the selection and or- 
ganization of subject matter, and the most approved methods of 
presentation in each subject. Selected references should be indi- 
cated for the guidance of the teacher in his further study of the 
pedagogical problems of the subject. 

(d) That the syllabi should contain suggestive lists of supple- 
mentary readings, sources, and educational materials suitable for 
pupils of high school age. 

5. It is recommended that objectives, curricula, and syllabi for 
junior high schools in rural communities be developed by the State. 
In general these should observe the principles suggested for the 

183 



development of objectives, curricula, and syllabi for the regular 

high school. They should be suited to the needs and maturity of 
rural pupils of 12 to 15 years of age. 

6. ll is recommended that the development of the courses of 
study in each high school subject (both on the basis of the junior- 
senior high school plan of organization and for the four-year high 
school) for the rural high schools of a particular section of the State 
be made (so soon as the intermediate unit shall have been devel- 
oped) one of the responsibilities of the authorities in charge of the 
high schools of the intermediate administrative unit in which the 
high school is Located. This will make for courses of study better 
suited to the rural high schools than those in operation under the 
present prae lice of the State. 

7. The: following recommendations are made with regard to the 
offering of particular subjects in the rural high schools: 

(</) Undoubtedly the- social science group is one of the most 
genuinely liberalizing groups of studies in the secondary school. It 
furnishes the most direct means for teaching citizenship. The pres- 
ent requirements for the rural high schools are, from the standpoint 
of time given, suIIk [ent. For meeting the needs of today, and par- 
I i< ularly of those pupils who do not continue their education beyond 
the- rural high school, a reorganization of the work in the social sci- 
em ea seems desirable. 

(/>) It is recommended that the study of American history be 
offered to pupils of the rural high school at least as early as the 
third year. It is further recommended that steps be taken to en- 
courage in the rural high schools the teaching of community civics, 
economics, and sociology, and that the development of courses of 
study in these subjects suited to the needs and experience of rural 
high school boys and girls be encouraged and guided. 

(c) It is recommended that there be developed for the rural high 
school a course in the study of occupations. It is believed that such 
a course would have significant values in teaching citizenship. It 
should also serve directly as a means of acquainting pupils with the 
opportunities for vocational service, and serve as a basis for guid- 
ance in the intelligent choice of a vocation. 

(<l) Efficient homemaking is of basic importance in promoting 

184 



the welfare of the home and of good citizenship. The great majority 
of the girls enrolled in the rural high schools will ultimately become 
homemakers. In 1919-20 only 11 percent of the rural high schools 
of New York offered opportunities for training in homemaking. The 
establishing of courses in homemaking in every rural high school is 
recommended. Such courses should be enriched and broadened so 
as to meet in the fullest possible manner the home and community 
needs. Credit should be given on the same basis as for academic 
subjects. Emphasis should be given to the problem of getting col- 
leges to accept for entrance the work in homemaking subjects. 

(':) One of the outstanding needs in the development of rural 
secondary education is the opportunity for vocational training in 
agriculture. At present less than ten percent of the rural high 
schools offer courses in vocational agriculture. It is recommended, 
therefore, that courses in vocational agriculture be encouraged in 
every rural high school of the State where a sufficient number of 
pupils are interested in the work. 

(/) It is recommended that the beginning science in rural high 
schools, and especially where there Is the junior high school organ- 
ization, be a broad introduction to science designed to give the 
pupil contact with the many phases of science as it affects his daily 
life rather than a detailed acquaintance with a special field of 
scientific knowledge highly organized. General science seems best 
adapted to meet these demands. For the rural high schools of New 
York, however, it should be developed with definite regard to the 
experience background of the rural high school pupil of New York 
and with flexibility permitting adaptation to conditions peculiar to 
particular localities. 

(g) It is recommended that less emphasis be given to the study of 
foreign languages in the rural high schools, and that all work in 
foreign languages, both ancient and modern, be elective. 

(h) It is recommended that intermediate algebra, advanced alge- 
bra, and trigonometry, particularly the last two, be discouraged in 
the rural high school, and that for pupils not preparing for college 
not more than one year of mathematics be required. 

(i) It is recommended that the curriculum of the rural high 
school be organized in the first two years with the view to meeting 

i8< 



most effectively the needs and interests of all pupils and that sub- 
jects specifically required for college entrance be offered in the last 
two years of high school. 

8. It is recommended that a careful study be made as to the 
educational values of extra-class-room activities and as to the best 
methods for realizing these values in a rural high school and that 
steps be taken to make principals and teachers acquainted with the 
results of this study in the way of suggestions as to the nature, aims, 
organization and control of such activities. 

9. It is recommended that more definite guidance be given rural 
high school principals in the organization of their daily programs: 
with the purpose (1) of increasing the range of subjects offered in the 
high school; (2) of meeting more directly community needs, and 
(3) at the same time with a view to reducing the teaching load for 
teachers. It would seem that these ends may be attained through 
such means as a better selection of subjects, by decreasing the pro- 
portion of extremely small classes in subjects appealing to but a few 
pupils, and by alternation of classes in such subjects as English, 
history, third and fourth year language and science and by begin- 
ning specific languages in alternate years. 

It is suggested that the State department can be of inestimable 
service to the high schools of the State by encouraging the sending to 
it by local principals, teachers and supervisors of ways and means 
which they have used successfully in meeting their problems of the 
daily program, curriculum organization, subject matter content, 
and methods of teaching. These suggestions should then be re- 
turned to the rural high school principals and teachers throughout 
the State. It would seem also that the department might perform a 
valuable service to the rural high schools of the State by directing 
in selected schools experimental work concerning problems of or- 
ganization, curriculum content and arrangement, and teaching 
methods. 

In conclusion it would seem that the problem of the rural high 
school in New York is to develop a type of secondary education 
suited to the needs, abilities, and life purposes of rural high school 
pupils. Its dominant aim should be the development of individually 
and socially efficient persons within the limits of the secondary 

186 



school and of the maturity of pupils of high school age. Its work 
should be determined in the light of the possibilities and responsi- 
bilities of the public secondary school as an institution, rather than 
as an institution, the work of which is primarily preparatory for 
higher education. 



SURVEY OF NEW YORK STATE 
RURAL SCHOOLS 

The survey was organized with the following sections 
and directors: 

Administration and Supervision. C. H Tudd 

School Support. Harlan Updegraff 

Teachers and Courses of Study. W C Baelev 

School Buildings. J. E. Butterworth' 

Measuring the Work of the Schools. M. E. Haggertv 

Community Relations. Mabel Carney. na ^ ert > • 

The results of the studies conducted by these directors 
and their associates have been embodied in a series of 
reports 1 he approximate dates at which these will be 
available for distribution are: 
Volume I. Rural School Survey of New York State 

(Preliminary Report) May, 1922. 
Volume II. Administration and Supervision, October 1922 
I he District System. Shelby. 
The Supervisory District. Brooks. 
The Community Unit. Works. 
Principles of Administration. Bobbitt. 
The State System of Examinations. Kruse 
Health Education. Peterson. 
The State Schools of Agriculture. Holton 
Junior Extension. Holton. 
\/~t rn Sum , m j*ry and Recommendations. Judd. 

Volume II. School Support. Updegraff. August, 1922 
Volume IV. Teachers and Teacher Preparation. Bagley 
September, 1922. 8 *' 

Elementary School Curriculum. Brim. 
, ; . ., Community Relations. Carney. 

Volume V. School Buildings. Butterworth. June, 1922 
v UmC .X- The Educational Product. Haggerty. July 1922 
Volume VII. The Rural High Schools. Ferrifs. August,' 1922 
(Ihe administrative features of the high school 
were studied in cooperation with Dr. Judd, while 
teachers and curricula were developed under the 
\r i „■„ , general direction of Dr. Bagley.) 

Volume VIII. Vocational Education. Eaton. July, 1922. 

(Prepared under the direction of Dr. Bagley.) 

These volumes may be obtained at seventy-five cents each nost- 
ril be^nTH^ 11 " 11 ^ 11 ,' "^-" 11 ^ 5 ^ 3110 " and Supervision, 'wWch 
w shin, tn If ar - .° nly f a hmited editi ° n Wil1 be P rinted a "d those 
3% Certam ° f secunn g c °P j es may place their orders at 

any time. 

Joint Committee on Rural Schools, 
Ithaca, N. Y. 



